During practically the entire offseason, rumors linked the Los Angeles Lakers to mercurial star guard Kyrie Irving.
Now, Irving is missing Brooklyn Nets games after he was suspended for promoting anti-Semitic material on Twitter. Though his talent is undeniable, he has created headaches for every franchise he has played with during his NBA career.
That might be why it appears as though teams across the league, including the Lakers, are starting to see little value in potentially acquiring Irving via trade.
“I can’t sit here and lie to you and say that there is much value in trading for Kyrie,” NBA insider Chris Haynes said. “I’m on the phones with a lot of teams. His name is not really coming up, even for the Los Angeles Lakers, who he was tied to for much of the offseason. That’s just not something I’m hearing right now.”
After Irving was suspended, he was given a list of things he had to do in order to be reinstated by the Nets. According to a recent report, he went “above and beyond” what was asked of him.
“One source, who was granted anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the matter, said that Irving chose to go ‘above and beyond’ what was asked of him,” Shams Charania of The Athletic wrote.
Irving is expected to make his return to the court for Sunday’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies in Brooklyn. It will be fascinating to see what kind of reception Irving gets from the home crowd.
On the court this season, the one-time NBA champion has been his regular impressive self. In eight games, he’s put up 26.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game. From a pure numbers standpoint, he could be an asset to the Lakers or any other team.
However, with Irving, it is about much more than just numbers. He has been a distraction for his teams and teammates over the years in various different ways.
If the Lakers do eventually decide that Irving is worth the risk and try to trade for him, the team’s leadership is surely going to want to have a really clear plan in place when it comes to how it would handle any issues involving Irving.
Only time will tell if such a contingency plan is necessary for the Purple and Gold.
