Ever since Kyrie Irving joined the Brooklyn Nets, he has been in the headlines for controversies more than for his performances on the court. He has been with the team for just three seasons, but there are already rumors of him leaving the team.
Initially, the rumor mill suggested that Irving might opt out of his player option and join elsewhere as a free agent or simply opt into it for a sign-and-trade. Both the possibilities turned out to be untrue as he opted into his $37 million player option and decided he wanted to play for the Nets.
Unfortunately, right after his decision, Kevin Durant announced that he wanted out of the Brooklyn Nets. If KD leaves the Nets, then it’s quite obvious that Irving will follow in his footsteps and get traded as well.
He has been linked to the Los Angeles Lakers for a trade over the last few weeks. Although the rumors started to settle down a few days ago, NBA analyst Brian Windhorst once again reignited them by saying that the Lakers are the favorites to trade for Irving.
Additionally, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin also seems to believe that Kyrie to the Lakers is the best move for not only the two parties involved but the rest of the NBA franchises as well. He believes if Kyrie truly wants to be a Lakers player this season and in the future, then if any other team trades for him, they will only be getting him on a rental.
“The Lakers have the type of package that should be able to acquire Kyrie Irving especially the signal is out to the league that Kyrie would like to be in LA beyond next season so any other team that try’s to deal for him would be getting a rental player”pic.twitter.com/JC6iLtDYWn
— Laker Central (@LakerCentral365) July 6, 2022
“The Lakers do have the type of package that should be able to acquire Kyrie Irving. Especially if the signal is out to the league that Kyrie would like to be in LA beyond next season. So any other team that tries to deal for him would be getting a rental player. And quite frankly, a rental player with some warts who has really been unreliable in the last several seasons.
This is where it truly gets interesting. It is obvious that the Lakers will include Russell Westbrook in any trade package for Kyrie Irving. But with the Nets heading towards a rebuild, they need draft picks along with Russ.
The Lakers have held those future picks, but the question is, why? If they can trade for Irving, they will have a superteam of LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Kyrie Irving.
In all honesty, if this lineup can stay healthy throughout the season, the Lakers will have a really good shot at winning the NBA Championship. Also, with LeBron James not getting any younger, they should focus on winning right now rather than thinking about the future this much.
