Kyrie Irving has reshaped the Mavericks into the best team in the West just one season after his controversial trade to the franchise. The Lakers were widely expected to be the favorites to land Kyrie, but a variety of factors kept them from making a deal. Jovan Buha reiterated the three major factors that stopped the Lakers in 2023 on his podcast, starting with the Lakers not wanting to give Kyrie a 4-year contract.
“The Lakers wanted to sign him to a 2-year contract extension, but Kyrie wanted to opt out and become a free agent, and seek a four-year deal. The Lakers were a bit hesitant and preferred a 2-year, $80 million extension. The fact that Kyrie wasn’t willing to sign that extension, LA was a bit skittish about acquiring him and the flight risk of him leaving if it didn’t work out.”
Another sticking point for the Lakers was the inclusion of Austin Reaves and Max Christie, especially with Kyrie refusing to sign a 2-year contract and testing free agency.
“They didn’t want to include Austin Reaves and Max Christie if Kyrie wasn’t willing to sign the extension. Had he been willing to sign the extension, I believe they would have been willing to part with one of the two. But they didn’t want to give up who they viewed as their two-best young assets in terms of players at the time for a guy who could leave in the summer.”
Finally, Buha also mentioned that the Nets wanted to remain competitive after the deal but those plans fell through when Kevin Durant demanded a trade.
“The Nets didn’t want to give up any additional; role-players in the trade because they wanted to remain competitive around Kevin Durant. Shortly after, Kevin Durant demanded a trade and the rest is history.”
(Starts at 33:55)
The Lakers will look back at this trade miss with regret given what the Mavericks achieved, but the circumstances for both teams were different. The Mavericks were building around a young star, Luka Doncic, who pushed for Kyrie on the franchise, and Dallas could not risk alienating him with his contract up in a few seasons.
LeBron James also pushed for the Lakers to acquire Kyrie, but the cost associated with the Mavericks was not comparable to what the Nets wanted the Lakers to give up.
In addition, the Mavericks were comfortable with taking the risk of Kyrie testing free agency because they knew they had the best pitch to convince him to stay. The player and team compromised on a 3-year contract instead of the four Kyrie initially wanted, with the return on that contract already looking phenomenal.
Irving averaged 25.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.2 assists this regular season. He’s currently putting up 22.0 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 5.2 assists in the 2024 Playoffs as the Mavericks are one win away from the NBA Finals.
Did The Lakers Make A Mistake By Not Acquiring Kyrie?
The Lakers had plenty of trade packages to offer for Kyrie, whether to the Nets or the Mavericks last summer after they failed to make the Playoffs with Kyrie. There were even rumors and proposed trades during the season when the Mavericks looked like a Play-In team.
The Nets were always going to be harder to negotiate with due to team owner Joe Tsai adamantly against Irving ending up on the Lakers, a destination everyone knew he preferred. As a result, the Lakers were fighting a losing battle when it came to acquiring Kyrie for a price that would make it a good deal for them.
If they ended up giving up their remaining first-round picks along with either Reaves or Christie, there’s no guarantee they’d replicate the success the Mavericks are having. Given everything that happened with Darvin Ham, it’s hard to imagine Irving being a silent spectator to all of that.
In Dallas, he has a coach and executive he had a personal relationship with for years, Jason Kidd and Nico Harrison, helping him feel like he can trust the organization. The internal instability of the Lakers would have been challenging for Kyrie to deal with, especially with the Mavs creating an environment for him where all he has to do is focus on basketball.
The Mavericks also weren’t instantly good with Irving, missing the Playoffs last season and hovering around the No. 8 seed in February 2024. Thankfully, they had additional assets to acquire the likes of Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington, which made them true contenders. If the Lakers acquired Kyrie, they likely wouldn’t have had the pieces to bolster their depth the way Dallas did.
Ultimately, the Lakers are in the perfect position to acquire a younger star-level player in an organization that doesn’t hold active malice toward you. If they can make something happen this summer, the Kyrie miss is far more palatable.
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