Why didn’t the Lakers trade for Kyrie Irving? What did they offer the Brooklyn Nets?
As he makes his move to the Dallas Mavericks, many are left wondering why the Los Angeles Lakers could sign Kyrie Irving, after being linked with him for so long.
Though LeBron James stands on the verge of NBA history, the reality is the Lakers are in desperate need of reinforcements. With their main target - for quite a while - now in the hands of another team in the league, one has to ask just what is it that the Lakers offered, and why didn’t the Brooklyn Nets accept it?
Why did the Nets say no to the Lakers?
To make it simple, the Lakers failed to offer what the Nets were asking. Despite an extended pursuit of Kyrie Irving, and the Lakers own LeBron James making it clear that Irving’s acquisition would make them contenders, the team still couldn’t manage to land the Nets’ point guard. Preferring instead, to make a deal with the Dallas Mavericks.
The Nets traded Irving to Dallas in exchange for Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, two first-round picks and a number of second-round picks, which is to say, a fair amount. According to reports, “The Lakers and Nets had several conversations on a potential deal,” the report read. “But Nets preferred Mavs’ package – getting back a point guard and wing to plug in now plus the future picks.” Truthfully, this makes perfect sense and even more so when you look at the way in which Irving has been playing. Currently in the middle of an All-Star season, the point guard has averaged 27.1 points, 5.3 assists and 5.1 rebounds per game. If you’re going to give that up, it’s only obvious that you’d opt for players who don’t need to be built for the future.
The Lakers and Nets are in different places
With Russell Westbrook and a number of Draft picks included in their package, the Lakers were always going to fall short of what the Nets wanted. Regardless of the loss of Irving, the Nets are currently fourth in the East on a record of 32-20, which is precisely why they’d want players like Dinwiddie and Finney-Smith, both of whom are potential starters. On the other side, you’ve got the Lakers who are 13th in the West with a losing record of 25-29 and that’s to say, in need of players who can make a difference right now.
Who now for the Lakers?
At this point, there are a matter of days left before the NBA’s trade deadline on February 9th. What that means, is that the Lakers need to step up the pace immediately in terms of finding suitable trade options. They recently acquired Rui Hachimura, which is good but not great and word is, they’re in talks with the Hornets about Westbrook and Patrick Beverley, but those are departures not arrivals. Whatever the case, one thing is clear: The Lakers missed the boat with Irving. As bad as that may be, for those who wanted to see him reunite with LeBron James - we did as well - what would be worse is if they fail to bolster their roster, because if we look at their record, it’s clear they need to.