A superstar-filled 3-team trade to get Kyrie Irving on the Los Angeles Lakers
By Jason Reed
Why the Los Angeles Lakers would say yes:
Kyrie Irving has not been the best teammate in recent years. Dating back to his time with the Boston Celtics, he has not shown the leadership trait of a star player and he has not been the most reliable or consistent player in staying on the court.
That being said, when Irving is at his best he is one of the most talented guards in the league and can make a serious difference on a title-contending team. He already knows what it takes to play next to LeBron James and he is far better than Russell Westbrook.
That is the entire thinking behind this trade for the Lakers. There is no chance that the team will win a championship with Russell Westbrook on the roster. However, with Irving, the Lakers would be the rightful favorites to win the championship next season.
Previous reports have indicated that the Lakers are not interested in trading future draft capital just to move Westbrook off the team. While that makes sense in a salary dump trade, if they can flip Westbrook for another star in Irving then they will be much more likely to trade picks.
The championship window is shrinking and this trade would allow the Lakers to go all-in on the window that still exists with LeBron James while also giving Anthony Davis another star to partner with when LeBron James leaves. Kyrie is not a spring chicken, but he can help transition the team )(with Davis) into a new era post-LeBron while still being a contending basketball team.