NBA Owner Prevented Lakers from Acquiring Kyrie Irving: Report

Patrick Beverley and Dennis Schroder guard Kyrie Irving

Getty Patrick Beverley and Dennis Schroder guard Kyrie Irving

An NBA owner reportedly prevented the Los Angeles Lakers from acquiring Kyrie Irving.

Marc Stein of Substack reported on February 5 that Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai didn’t want to trade Irving to the Lakers.

“The Nets, rather than trading with Phoenix or the Lakers, ultimately came away with the two Mavericks they wanted most and a better win-now duo than L.A. could offer: [Spencer] Dinwiddie and [Dorian] Finney-Smith,” Stein wrote. “The Nets also succeeded, as one source close to the process put it, in meeting one of the presumed objectives held by team owner Joe Tsai by sending Irving somewhere other than the Lakers — his preferred destination.”

The Nets wound up trading Irving to the Dallas Mavericks. Brooklyn sent Dallas Irving and Markieff Morris for Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, an unprotected 2029 first-round pick and second-round picks in 2027 and 2029.

LeBron James and Anthony Davis wanted the Lakers to trade for Irving, league sources told Heavy Sports. Both superstars were upset when they heard the news that Irving was getting traded to the Mavericks.


What Did the Lakers Offer the Nets for Kyrie Irving?

The Lakers offered the Nets a package of Russell Westbrook and two first-round picks in 2027 and 2029 for Irving, according to a February 5 report from Shams Charania of The Athletic. Brooklyn wanted Los Angeles to include Austin Reaves, Max Christie and pick swaps.

“The Lakers offered the Nets a package of Westbrook and two first-round picks in 2027 and 2029 for Irving in the last two days, sources with knowledge of the discussions said — to which the Nets informed the Lakers that in order to make an offer to get in the Irving sweepstakes they would require all of their young players such as Austin Reaves and Max Christie and pick swaps in addition to Westbrook and the two first-round picks,” Charania wrote. “The Nets ultimately moved on from a possible Lakers framework to choose Dallas.”

Irving wanted the Lakers to trade for him, league sources told Heavy Sports. The All-Star not only has a relationship with James, but he also has a rapport with Davis and Los Angeles assistant coach Phil Handy. Irving and Davis were teammates on the 2014 FIBA World Cup Team, while Irving and Handy won the 2016 championship together on the Cleveland Cavaliers with James.


The Lakers Had ‘Serious Concerns’ About Kyrie Irving’s Professionalism & Availability

The Lakers wanted to trade for Irving. However, they reportedly had serious concerns about his professionalism and availability, according to a February 5 report from Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register News Group. Irving only played in 143 games with the Nets after signing with them in 2019.

“Meanwhile, a cryptic tweet from James seemed to anticipate the arrival of Irving – a player whose All-NBA talent has often been outweighed by his penchant for on-court controversy,” Goon wrote. “While one person with knowledge of the team’s interest in Irving told Southern California News Group that high-level team officials had serious concerns about his professionalism and availability – especially considering that the Lakers would have had to at least consider extending him on max or near-max money beyond this season – according to Bleacher Report, the team was willing to part with both their 2027 and 2029 first-round picks to get the deal done. It fell apart, according to a report from The Athletic, because the Nets wouldn’t stop there, also desiring two of the team’s talented young players in Austin Reaves and Max Christie.”

Irving becomes an unrestricted free agent this summer. He’s averaging 27.1 points this season while shooting 37.4% from beyond the arc.

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