Lakers Rumors: Kyrie Irving wants to play with Anthony Davis
Recent Los Angeles Lakers rumors involve Kyrie Irving, who reportedly wants to play with Anthony Davis and could consider the Lakers in free agency.
One of the biggest Los Angeles Lakers rumors in recent months looks to have finally come to fruition. The Lakers and New Orleans Pelicans have agreed to a mega-deal for Anthony Davis.
Los Angeles will reportedly send a king’s ransom to New Orleans for Davis. Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball and Josh Hart are will going to the Big Easy along with multiple future draft picks. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports that it is three first round picks, including the No. 4 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.
That is a pretty steep price for a single player, but it was a deal that Rob Pelinka and company almost had to get done. They could not afford trade rumors to run rampant again to just have things fall apart, ruining team morale again.
The Lakers also were able to retain Kyle Kuzma. While debates will rage on about whether or not he was the one worth keeping, they at least got to hold onto one of their young players.
The Pelicans have agreed to a deal to trade Anthony Davis to the Lakers for Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, and three first-round picks – including the No. 4 overall in 2019 Draft, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 15, 2019
A reason for Kuzma being who they kept could have been money related. Kuzma, as the No. 27 overall pick, will be making less than $2 million during the 2019-20 season. Ball and Ingram, on the other hand, will be earning more than $8.7 million and $7.2 million respectively.
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By unloading those contracts, Los Angeles has retained some salary cap flexibility to round out the rest of the roster around LeBron James, Kuzma and Davis as the foundation. Moritz Wagner and Isaac Bonga are the only other two players under contract.
Depending on what Davis does with his trade bonus and when the trade becomes official, the Lakers could have between $23.7 million and $32.5 million in available cap space. Veteran players will undoubtedly be interested in joining James and Davis, who is one of the top duos now in the NBA. However, you can expect the team to aim higher than minimum deals.
The plan for years was for the team to land multiple stars. They have two but could add a third in free agency. One of the players to keep an eye on is Kyrie Irving.
The Brooklyn Nets are reportedly the front runners for Irving, there is some optimism that Irving could still be in play for the Lakers. Irving and James found plenty of success together with the Cleveland Cavaliers. But, according to David Aldridge, it is Davis that could be the main draw.
According to Aldridge, Irving is interested in playing with Davis and has been for months. With Davis now appearing ticketed for Los Angeles, could Irving be next?
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With no draft picks now in the 2019 NBA Draft, things may be quiet in Laker Land the next few days. However, expect Lakers rumors to continue popping up as they are now positioning themselves to have the next super team in the Western Conference.