Mavericks star guard Kyrie Irving had interest in reuniting with LeBron James in either Dallas or Los Angeles over the offseason, according to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne. Irving said as much to James before the Lakers‘ first-round Game 6 against the Grizzlies last year.
As detailed by Shelburne, the Lakers had internal discussions about whether to pursue Irving via trade or free agency last year and had called the Nets several times since June 2022, when Irving and the Nets didn’t come to terms on a contract extension. James was open to the idea of pairing up again with Irving, but didn’t want to push anything while the franchise was still recovering from the Russell Westbrook experiment, Shelburne writes.
The Mavericks held Irving’s Bird Rights and were determined to keep him and Luka Doncic together, re-signing him to a three-year, $126MM deal. After bringing back Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura and signing the likes of Taurean Prince, Gabe Vincent and Cam Reddish, there was internal debate about whether or not the Lakers had the speed to keep up with the top guards of the Western Conference, but they decided it wasn’t a concern to address at the time, according to Shelburne.
Flash forward several months and Irving has avoided any off-court incidents that plagued him in Brooklyn while James and Anthony Davis are enjoying a healthy season at the top of their game. However, the Lakers lack consistent point guard play. The Mavericks sit at 24-18 and seventh in the west entering Thursday while the Lakers are 21-21, and 10th in the standings.
With the trade deadline approaching, the Lakers have roster questions to sort out to help alleviate some of the burden for James and Davis moving forward, Shelburne writes.
“It’s just too much on Bron right now,” one rival player whose team recently defeated the Lakers said. “Everyone is just going to pack the paint and try to frustrate him because they need a lot. Speed. Play-making. Shooting.”
We have more from the Lakers:
- The Lakers recently turned back to their opening-night starting five for the foreseeable future after coach Darvin Ham experimented with lineups through the first half of the season. That means Reaves and D’Angelo Russell are once again starting next to each other, and the team is hoping that duo can be a catalyst for future success, Khobi Price of The Orange County Register writes. While Reaves and Russell have complementary skill sets, Price writes the defense needs some cleaning up if the Lakers want to start stacking wins.
- That lineup is helping the Lakers reach a new offensive ceiling, according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic. After beating the Mavericks on Wednesday, Los Angeles has won four of its last six games after dropping 10 of its previous 13. Buha writes the ball movement and aggression were elements of L.A.’s offense that stood out in that game. The Lakers also boast an improved offensive rating since making the switch back to their original starting five. “We’re just moving the basketball,” Davis said. “Trying to play the right way. When we share the basketball, good things tend to happen.“
- When asked if his team needs to make trades before the deadline, James said he doesn’t “play fantasy basketball,” tweets ESPN’s David McMenamin. “It’s too disrespectful to think about what we need or what we don’t have,” James said. “I don’t do that to my teammates. We’ve been putting in the work and that’s what we’ve got to continue to do.“
It’s a good squad if everyone is healthy and plays to their potential. It worked for short period of time and then they slump for whatever reason. The IST was supposed to keep players engaged, and it did but the next 12 games were typical mid-season, we are bored games. They can excel if they want as-is.
IST should start later (january)
@ Tyfcpsts
So the Lakers are too bored to be able to shoot threes?
Lol, this team can’t win without massive ref help.
Lakers win when they control the pace of play, by getting to the free throw line and playing defense. They have about 8 rotation players who prefer to attack the basket which suits them better for the playoffs when matchups are magnified and games are slower.
Shootaround – what happens first: Clippers injury or Kyrie does something crazy off court?
Nice win over Mavs. Mavs don’t play D. If their shots don’t fall. They don’t beat good teams. Mavs need a defensive stud.
Russell had a nice gm. Imo they are starting him so he can look good. Bring his value up so he can be traded. Murray starting here instead of Russell. Makes the Lakers a better team. Murray is more a facilitator and will fit better. But who will take Russell. Hawks don’t want him.
Lakers definitely need a shakeup. I still don’t see them in West Finals. Bron era is over …… over
Last 3 sentences were all said last year… then they built this roster, made the West finals, and LeBron is still balling. A trade will cost the Lakers their depth which is their strength. Vincent will be back to aid the defense and playmaking and I swear to God almighty if Christie gets some playing time this team can make a run.
They only made the West finals after the refs put out the sleepless nights apology. GSW learned it’s hard to win a series playing 5 on 8 when the other team shoots twice as many free throws (series ftas 120-60).
Lakers’ depth is their strength? If that was true, they’d be above .500
The Lakers have taken advantage of the modern NBA where even the slightest contact is a foul. All the Warriors want to do is spot up and shoot 3s. Dubs are below .500 is that because of the refs too or are they just washed?
Except this season the Lakers aren’t getting the massive ref help they got last season. They were 1st in the L in ftas last season and their opponents combined were dead last. This season they’re 8th and opponents 29th.
Your allegation that all the Warriors do is shoot threes is incorrect, btw – the cause is that they started a war with the refs years ago led by Draymond and have paid the price with the no calls on way more than the slightest contact. The loss to the Grizzlies is a perfect example – 40-10 free throw advantage for the Grizzlies, who shot 23 more threes and had 20 less points in the paint.
And the Lakers are below .500 too, “is that because of the refs too or are they just washed?”
Was a real fun day knocking the Dubs out by 40 last year
Except that didn’t happen.
This is what happens when GM Lebron gets to call the shots. Of course he wants “win now” players because he’s nearing the end himself. It’s a flawed roster, that when everything is clicking perfectly they can win an in season tournament, but they are not a legit title contender. He’s earned the right to get to call shots in roster adjustments, but at this point the Lakers are just accommodating LeBron as opposed to seriously trying to win a title.
James doesn’t play fantasy basketball. He just goes to the media and the GM and makes demands.