Getty LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers have been linked to Kyrie Irving since the end of last season, although their rumored pursuit has failed to conjure anything substantial.
However, according to a November 7 article from The Athletic’s Sam Amick, it would appear that the Lakers have cooled their interest in the superstar point guard to the point where his arrival on the West Coast looks to be almost ‘impossible’.
The Lakers have ‘significant concerns’ about the prospect of adding Kyrie Irving at any price, per @sam_amick
“It’s quite clear that Laker Land is a highly unlikely, if not impossible, landing spot.”
(Via t.co/ZsA9RlhfQV)
“Sources say the Lakers have significant concerns about the prospect of adding Irving at any price and have not been focused on that scenario all season long. It’s quite clear that Laker Land is a highly unlikely, if not impossible, landing spot,” Amick wrote.
Irving has become somewhat of a distraction for the Brooklyn Nets this season, and is currently serving a team-imposed suspension, so, while his skillset is unquestionable it’s unlikely the Lakers would want to acquire a guard who brings so much negative mediate attention.
Lakers Could Look to Trade Anthony Davis
With Irving seemingly off the table, both now and moving forward, rumors are starting to circulate surrounding the future of Anthony Davis. According to Bill Simmons of The Ringer, the Lakers could be open to trading away their star forward should teams around the league show interest in trading for him.
Bill Simmons on the availability of Anthony Davis (The Ringer)
“I just feel like something’s gonna happen with Davis, it’s the only move…If we locked ourselves in a room for like two days and we’re like, ‘What do we do?’ I think we would land on training Davis and I think that’s why there’s a little buzz that he might be gettable,” Simmons said on a November 7 episode of The Bill Simmons podcast.
Davis has been impressive this season, helping the Lakers with averages of 23.2 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.4 assists on 53.8% field goal shooting and 28.6% shooting from deep. However, Davis’ troubled injury history could be a sticking point for interested teams, as he has consistently struggled to remain healthy over the past two years.
Davis’ Starting to Show Frustration With Lakers
On November 7, the Lakers fell to another defeat at the hands of the Utah Jazz, giving them just two wins and eight losses over their first ten games. A team that came into the season full of belief that they could challenge for a championship, the Lakers are currently sinking without a trace.
When speaking to the media following their latest loss, Davis cut a frustrated figure, noting how so many defeats is a tough pill for him to swallow.
“Honestly, it sucks. We don’t want to be 2-8 at all. It sucks, for sure. You have to look at it big picture. It’s been 10 games but still fairly early in the season — s**t, 2-8 is a hard pill for me to swallow…Obviously, it can change around. I think New Orleans was 1-12 or something last year, come back and go on a run. We’ve got to put it together. Offense has found its rhythm. It seems like we’ve lost all our defensive intensity. And that’s what’s killing us,” Davis said.
Unfortunately for Davis and the Lakers, their record reflects their current level of play, and their disjointed roster construction. So, unless Rob Pelinka orchestrates a trade – with Davis as part of the package or not, it’s hard to see how things get better for Los Angeles, at least in the short term.