The Los Angeles Lakers were constantly linked to Kyrie Irving even before the start of the 2022-23 NBA season. The Purple and Gold tried to trade for him on multiple occasions.
However, the Brooklyn Nets always denied the offer or countered it by adding impossible demands. Keeping that in mind, around the NBA trade deadline, the Nets wanted a package featuring Austin Reaves to send Irving to the Lakers. But Lakers owner Jeanie Buss was reportedly uninterested in including Reaves in trade packages for Kyrie.
“That’s the sense I’ve gotten,” Michael Scotto of HoopsHype said. “You touched on some of the Brooklyn stuff. I’ll add to that very briefly. You touched on those other tradable assets the Lakers had that the Nets wanted. Austin Reaves was one of those guys that came up. I heard among the people who wanted to keep Austin in LA was Jeanie Buss. That’s a good advocate to have on your side if you’re a Laker.”
The Lakers have found a diamond in the rough with Austin Reaves. Reaves has slowly become one of the most consistent role players for the Lakers this season and is improving with each passing game.
Reaves is currently averaging 11.5 PPG, 2.9 RPG, and 2.8 APG while shooting 51.1% from the field and 38.5% from deep. These numbers are enough for Jeanie Buss to show full trust in Reaves and keep him a member of the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Lakers Are No Longer Pursuing Kyrie Irving
There was a time when the entire league believed that Kyrie Irving would one day become a member of the Los Angeles Lakers.
After all, whenever there were any rumors of Irving leaving the Nets, the Lakers would be the first team to approach the Nets in hopes of signing Kyrie. But since Kai’s trade to the Mavericks, the Lakers have seemingly lost interest in the star point guard.
So much so that it was recently reported that the Lakers are not going to pursue Irving this summer when he becomes an unrestricted free agent.
“From what I’ve been told, they’re not going to be pursuing Kyrie Irving this offseason…,” Buha says. “To my knowledge and to what I’ve been told, the Kyrie ship, I think, has sailed. You never want to say never. That could easily change, but as of right now, their plan is to run this (team) back.”
As of now, it seems blatantly obvious that the Lakers are uninterested in acquiring Irving. But considering Kyrie is one of the brightest superstars in the NBA, the Lakers may once again try to sign him in the future.
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