Getty Images LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers drives to the basket against Kyrie Irving of the Brooklyn Nets.
Brooklyn Nets star point guard Kyrie Irving will be an unrestricted free agent this coming offseason. He and the Nets did not agree on the terms of a new contract extension last summer, and the former number-one overall pick will hit the free-agent market for the first time since 2019.
As one of the best talents in the NBA, teams will be banging down Irving’s door for the chance to sign him. According to Mark W. Sanchez of the New York Post, one of Irving’s suitors could be the Los Angeles Lakers. It would reunite him with his former teammate, LeBron James, with whom he won the lone title of his career in 2016.
“It is possible Irving wants to reunite with old Cavaliers pal LeBron James in Los Angeles,” Sanchez writes. “But James can opt out of his contract after the 2023-24 season. Would the Lakers offer Irving a contract for several seasons, which potentially would keep him around longer than James?”
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Lakers, Nets Trending in Different Directions
Irving relocating to Southern California would be a decision that came as a surprise to most people. Not only because of his reunion with LeBron but because the Nets and Lakers are currently on two different trajectories. While the Nets are amid a 12-game winning streak and closing in on the top spot in the Eastern Conference, Los Angeles has not enjoyed the same success out west.
The Lakers sit 13th in the Western Conference with a record of 13-21 and no tell-tale sign of when their injured star big man Anthony Davis could return to the floor. Even worse for the franchise is that losing this season does them no good because the New Orleans Pelicans will swap picks with the Lakers this season.
And if you’re wondering if that pick will move the needle for the Lakers next season, it won’t. It will likely be towards the bottom of the draft because the Pelicans currently hold the third seed in the Western Conference.
When you compare the situations between the Lakers and the Nets, one would think that Irving’s decision is a no-brainer. The Nets are currently set up to contend for championships right now and well into the future with Durant under contract with the franchise until 2026. If Kyrie’s priority is being in a winning situation, then the choice should be Brooklyn.
Lakers to ‘Look’ at Kyrie Irving During Free Agency
Outside of them winning a championship in 2020, the LeBron, Anthony Davis Lakers era has been nothing short of a disaster. They have missed the postseason twice and got eliminated by the Phoenix Suns in the first round in 2021. Part of that has to do with the sporadic availability of Davis due to his injury vulnerability. He has only played 76 games combined in the 2021 and 2022 seasons. And this season, he has only played 25 games.
With LeBron approaching the backend of his career at 38, the Lakers can ill-afford to leave him out there with virtually no help when Davis does get hurt. One executive told Heavy Sports that they expect the Lakers to reach out to a slew of big-name free agents this summer, including Kyrie, as they look to beef up their roster.
“No matter what [the Lakers] do with trades or however they reconstruct this year, they are going to keep an eye on next summer. That is where they have a lot invested, being able to get another star-type player next summer,” the executive said to Heavy Sports in September.
“They’re going to look at Kyrie Irving, of course, but he is probably not their top choice. They will look at Jerami Grant, who they liked for a long time, same with Myles Turner. I think Andrew Wiggins would be a big prize there because he can play two-ways.”
It will be interesting to see if Irving remains with the Nets beyond this season.