As reported by various sources, Rob Pelinka and the Los Angeles Lakers are doing whatever they can to reunite LeBron James with Kyrie Irving this summer.
So far, talks are still ongoing and there is a good chance some kind of deal materializes before the end of this month. If not, the Purple and Gold already have a backup plan.
According to Dave McMenamin on ESPN’s NBA Today, Buddy Hield and Eric Gordon have become the top two targets for L.A. if they cannot trade for Uncle Drew.
If Kyrie doesn’t work out, they have plans in place — or plans they hope they’ll be able to execute — to achieve shooting on that roster in other directions. Whether that be a veteran like Buddy Hield, who they almost got on last year on draft day and you see Indiana just traded away Malcolm Brogdon and there could be more moves to come, or perhaps a guy like Eric Gordon in Houston. Those guys aren’t Kyrie Irving, of course, but they are players they feel they may be able to acquire to help their team.
Clearly, the Lakers are prioritizing shooting over everything — and it’s not hard to see why. This past season, the Lakers struggled to find an offensive rhythm from beyond the arc, and it held them back on the court.
With Kyrie, they would have someone who can handle the ball and score in bunches whenever the need is there.
At the very least, the Lakers hope they can rely on Buddy Hield or Eric Gordon to hit some shots and open up the floor for their teammates. But Pelinka will have to find and make a deal before any of that can happen.
Here’s to hoping he can pull something off…
