The Los Angeles Lakers were hoping that a Kyrie Irving trade would be the antidote to their doomed 2022-23 season. While they failed to get Kyrie, the eventual trade did help them make a Western Conference Finals run before regressing to being a below .500 team this season.
The Nets reportedly wanted Russell Westbrook, Austin Reaves, Max Christie, 2027 and 2029 first-round picks unprotected, and more pick swaps. The Lakers turned it down and Irving went to the Dallas Mavericks for considerably less, but fans think the Lakers should’ve done the deal in hindsight.
Nets asking price from the Lakers for Kyrie, per @ShamsCharania
Russell Westbrook
Austin Reaves
Max Christie
Two first-round picks (2027 & 2029)
Pick Swaps pic.twitter.com/fXZZRmiLpX
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 6, 2023
One fan showed the performance Kyrie Irving had last night and compared it to fans last year, saying they wouldn’t trade a big package to get Kyrie.
— 𝘾𝙤𝙖𝙘𝙝 𝙎𝙝𝙪𝙗𝙝 ⁶𓅓 (@OVOLakeShow) January 12, 2024
More fans chimed in by saying they would have done that deal.
Honestly yes
— 👑 (@Lebronin1) January 12, 2024
Fan continued to agree with the take.
100%
— LakeShowStop (@LakeShowStop) January 12, 2024
One fan said he’d do it without question while implying everyone has been overhyping the value that Austin Reaves provides.
Duh!!! Ya was drinking too much reaves kool aid
— Jose A (@joseAD9409) January 12, 2024
Some fans did say no and claimed the lack of depth would screw them over.
lol no we would’ve been screwed over rn team could’ve been possibly worse who knows
— 👑🎭 (@Br0nToLA23) January 12, 2024
Another fan disagreed with the deal claiming the Lakers’ defense would be non-existent.
Lakers would still be bad with no defenders at all
— NBA (@ThePurpleWon) January 12, 2024
Kyrie Irving dropped 44 points and 10 assists to end the Knicks’ winning streak with OG Anunoby while Luka Doncic was out injured. The entire Lakers starting five combined for 47 points in their blowout loss to the Suns last night, prompting fans to have this conversation after Kyrie’s heroics in Dallas.
The Mavericks landed Irving for a package around Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, and their 2029 first-round pick, along with second-round picks. That’s a far lower price than what they wanted from the Lakers, primarily because Joe Tsai reportedly held a grudge against Kyrie’s desire to be a Laker and jacked up the asking price for them.
Should The Lakers Have Done The Kyrie Irving Deal?
Looking back, it may be tempting to say that the Lakers missed out on Kyrie but they made the right move by not paying this price for Irving. That would have completely exhausted their asset capital while also making it impossible for them to make the depth-focused offseason moves, though they haven’t worked out to their liking.
Reaves and Christie are their best young assets while the 2027 and 2029 picks were the only tradeable picks the Lakers had last winter. Expecting swaps on top of that was overkill given the paltry price Dallas paid in comparison.
The results of last season also prove that the Lakers were better off with what they did. Westbrook and a top-four protected 2027 pick landed the Lakers D’Angelo Russell, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Malik Beasley. D’Lo and Vando, along with the increased opportunity for Reaves led the Lakers on their late-season run to the Western Conference Finals. Dallas missed the playoffs despite acquiring Kyrie when they were the No. 4 seed in the West.
The Mavs’ fortunes look better this season due to the increased continuity of their roster and the right summer moves. The wrong summer moves are what has held the Lakers back. But they’re in a position to deal their depth for a complementary star, provided they take the plunge. If they dealt for Kyrie and it didn’t work out, the Lakers would have had no exit strategy.
Irving is averaging 24.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.3 assists this season, missing a large part of the season due to injury before becoming healthy in January. If that happened on a depth-less Lakers squad, they may have been even worse than 9th in the West.
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