Kyrie Irving has been the subject of widespread criticism for most of his time with the Brooklyn Nets. His actions as a member of the team are well documented at this point, and it looks like the end is finally here, even though he just opted into his player option last month.
After Kevin Durant requested a trade from the Nets, Kyrie also reportedly wants out, and he is said to want to go to the Los Angeles Lakers. There have been some murmurs of a deal involving Russell Westbrook, who endured a difficult first season in LA, and the team has been looking to find a way to ship him out for quite a while at this point. It looks like the two teams might just exchange their problems, and that is what Shannon Sharpe believes is the best case for both sides as well. He also criticized Irving while giving his opinion on the trade on Undisputed on FS1.
https://twitter.com/undisputed/status/1543978815801655299
“I think it is a problem for a problem. I think the Brooklyn Nets want to move on from Kyrie Irving. They’re tired of him, the way he behaves, not just on the court, if they can ever get him on the court with the vaccine mandate and him not taking CTOs, choice time offs, and the way he treats teammates and the front office.”
Irving’s reported list of transgressions behind the scenes is a long one too, so it isn’t surprising that the Nets would want him out. They want the trade deal to include Joe Harris, which would reduce their payroll, and if the Lakers would be willing to take him, then the Nets would be willing to trade him there.
They would also need some draft picks, which the Lakers seem to be hesitant to part with, which might be another stumbling block for this trade. LeBron is pushing for the deal to happen though, and eventually, that might well be what pushes it over the line.
