The Los Angeles Lakers have the most interest of any NBA team in acquiring Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving this offseason, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Irving, who has been unable to come to terms on a long-term deal with the Nets, has a few options to get himself to another team this offseason.
“I think the one team with the most interest in Kyrie Irving are the Lakers,” said Wojnarowksi. “There’s really not a sign-and-trade scenario with Brooklyn that makes sense. Of course, if the Lakers wanted to offer Anthony Davis in a sign-and-trade, of course the Nets would love that. But that’s not going to happen.”
Wojnarowski explained that Irving’s path to getting to the Lakers would be to opt out of his player option for the 2022-23 season and sign with the Lakers for the $6 million exception that they will have available.
In that case, Irving would be giving up over $30 million in the 2022-23 season and possibly hope that Los Angeles could clear cap space to give him a long-term deal next offseason.
Last season, Irving averaged 27.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game while shooting 46.9 percent from the field and 41.8 percent from beyond the arc.
He showed he was willing to give up money by his decision to not get vaccinated against COVID-19 and miss several games during the 2021-22 season. It’s possible he could be willing to give up money again to get into the right situation this season.
The Lakers are clearly aiming to build the best roster possible around superstar LeBron James so they can chase another NBA title this season. It will be interesting to see if they are able to lure Irving to Los Angeles this offseason.
