Lakers Ready To Trade Russell Westbrook & 2 First Draft Picks To Bring Kyrie Irving From Nets

This Friday, the Brooklyn Nets point guard, Kyrie Irving, took the NBA world by storm. The Nets player announced that he wanted to leave the squad before the coming trade deadline. The trade deadline for the league is scheduled on February 9. Irving made the request to his team, but if his team does not accept, then he plans to leave the Nets in the following off-season. Naturally, this announcement has stirred all the teams in the tournament to buy this 30-year-old point guard.

Now, the team that has got the upper hand in recruiting Irving is the Los Angeles Lakers at the present time. If Irving comes to the Lakers, then he will reunite with his long-time friend, LeBron James. Kyrie Irving and James were part of the Cleveland Cavaliers back in 2016 that won the NBA championship. Although the Lakers are already well set with a good bunch of point guards, they need some suitable replacements for LeBron James and Anthony Davis and additions to their roster to strengthen their offense. 

The Lakers Looking Forward To Trade Russell Westbrook For Kyrie Irving

The Lakers have been looking to trade Russell Westbrook for a long time now. If the deal with Kyrie Irving finalizes, the Lakers would be happy to trade Westbrook along with Lonnie Walker IV to get Joe Harris with Irving. According to an insider of the Los Angeles Lakers, Jovan Buha, \”The Lakers are keen on buying Kyrie Irving. But to do the exchange, Russell Westbrook, along with another or two first-round picks of the Lakers of 2027 and 2029, needs to be sold.\”

Buha also added that the Lakers would be looking for another Brooklyn Nets player to sign the deal. Most likely, it would be the 31-year-old small forward cum shooting guard, Joe Harris. Next, it would depend on the Nets and how they feel about the picks of the Lakers. If anyone of those picks, they would consider valuable. Later, the situation would change depending on what happens with Kevin Durant.

Why Do The Lakers Have The Advantage By Bring Irving?

The Lakers might have to trade one of their picks to another team who, in return, would sell some more players to the Brooklyn Nets. This way, the Nets will be able to compete in the following season with a lot of depth in their roster. Reportedly the Lakers have a nice bunch of first-round picks for their 2027 and 2029 campaign. The team looks at this bunch of choices as too valuable trade assets. Hence, it is understandable why the Lakers have not yet exchanged them.

Who knows? Perhaps the Lakers were waiting for a situation like this when they could use these picks to get Kyrie Irving. There is a widespread belief around the team that the front office is one step away from converting the team back into title contenders in the current ongoing season. Maybe this Kyrie Irving deal was the one step that the team was in dire need of. The 30-year-old point guard, who has been an eight-time All-Star member, has had a pretty impressive season. He constantly proves to the NBA world that he is still among the best point guards in the current season. Kyrie Irving is averaging 27.1, 5.1, and 5.3 points, rebounds, and assists, respectively.