Getty Rob Pelinka of the Los Angeles Lakers.
There was a lot of momentum building that the Los Angeles Lakers could figure out a way to land Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving in a shocking move. There were even rumblings that Irving would opt out of his contract and sign with the Lakers for the mid-level exception, which would’ve caused him to lose close to $30 million. The guard decided to exercise his player option and commit to the Nets next season.
However, that might not tell the whole story. While Irving is under contract with Brooklyn that doesn’t mean he’ll finish the season there. His interest in the Lakers was real and could sign with them outright after the season. Brooklyn may want to get ahead of things and get something in return before losing the guard for nothing.
The Lakers might not even need to wait until the season starts to get the seven-time All-Star. Sean Deveney of Heavy.com spoke to a Western Conference executive who believes that a deal could still be had but the Lakers will need three or four teams involved to make a trade happen.
“It could happen in this offseason but it would take four teams most likely,” the executive said. “It would be complicated. You would need the Nets and Lakers, obviously, but then a third team to absorb Westbrook’s salary, which would be either Detroit or Oklahoma City. Those teams would need draft picks as incentive. Then you need another team to send back a player or two to Brooklyn because the Nets are not going to trade Kyrie just to get him off the books. They’re going to want to keep KD happy. But that fourth team, they’re going to be a team looking to either get rid of a player altogether or be willing to take on Russell Westbrook. That’s tricky. Utah, maybe, if they can’t find a taker for Gobert’s salary.
“You could do three teams, Kyrie to the Lakers, Gobert to Brooklyn and Russ to Utah, with the Jazz probably buying him out. That’s a longshot, though.”
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Deal Could Happen Down the Road
If a deal is going to happen, the Lakers would hope it would be finalized before the season starts. That’s not likely as the Nets could feel like they’re contenders with Irving after the offseason. If things go south quickly and Irving is an issue, Brooklyn could revisit a deal, according to the executive.
“It could be something that happens during the season, if the Nets get on the court and things go sideways – Ben Simmons is still not healthy, Durant is not happy, they’re struggling,” the executive said. “At that point, the Nets are pretty much out of leverage and the Lakers could send Westbrook and a pick for Kyrie and it’s doubtful the Nets would get a better deal. Again, it is a longshot but it is realistic.
“And the Lakers could try to create the room to sign him next summer, 2023. LeBron could take a lesser deal in an extension this summer to preserve some room. Or, they would probably have to dump Horton-Tucker to make that work, but that’s out there, too.”
Lakers May Have to Play Waiting Game
Irving was the Lakers’ quickest road to being considered contenders again. Though he comes with his own set of issues, he’s proven he can play with LeBron James while Russell Westbrook hasn’t. Adding him could’ve easily been a disaster but it would’ve been worth the risk considering how bad the team was last year.
With Irving seemingly off the table, the Lakers have to go back to the drawing board. All roads could lead them back to being patient and seeing if the Nets soften their trade demands. Things could get so bad in Brooklyn that they simply swap Irving for Westbrook and a draft pick. It’s hard to imagine the Lakers wouldn’t accept that.
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