With Kyrie Irving’s trade request and preference to be traded to the lakers, what do the Lakers have to trade for Kyrie Irving?
With the recent bombshell that has sent the league into madness that Irving has requested a trade, the Lakers are now primed to make a deal for Irving in a market that will only have so many serious suitors.
Will Los Angeles have to ship Russell Westbrook and two first-round picks to another team in a three-team deal to get a deal done? Will the Nets accept a deal straight up for Irving?
The Lakers clearly have those two first-round picks and Westbrook’s expiring contract (though they will need to send receive 750K or more in salary in a deal look at Joe Harris or Seth Curry’s salary in a deal)
The problem is that this would start to signal a rebuild in Brooklyn. With Kevin Durant without a running mate, they would need to find someone who could help them compete for a title this season. Chris Haynes reported that the Suns are viewed as a trade partner that can keep both teams “in their title pursuit” for their title race.
How can the Los Angeles Lakers trade for Kyrie Irving?
It seems that the Lakers will need to find a way to make it a three-way deal to make sure the Nets are able to find vets that can help them compete for a title.
A very solid way to do this is to ship Westbrook and the picks to the Jazz in order to ship Utah vets like Mike Conley, Jordan Clarkson or Kelly Olynk back to Brooklyn. The Spurs could also fit with Josh Richardson or Doug McDermott
The Lakers are getting served a golden opportunity by being able to trade for Kyrie Irving. From a pure basketball standpoint, he is the best player you could acquire at the deadline period. They need to make a push for Irving by trading Westbrook and two first-round picks while finding a way to get vets in any Irving deal.
LA has options in the Jazz and Spurs, the two main questions are. Can the Lakers get a deal done with and will the Nets accept a Spurs or Jazz vet return for Irving?