The idea of Kyrie Irving joining the Los Angeles Lakers this offseason is now something that has real legs. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Irving and the Brooklyn Nets are at an impasse that opens the door for Irving to find a new home elsewhere. The Lakers are Knicks are expected to be the teams pursuing the All-NBA guard.
Irving leaving the Nets seemed like something that could happen and with these reports and how the NBA operates, it seems more likely than not that Irving will be donning a new uniform next season. The Lakers need to take this opportunity to not just get Irving but to also move off of Russell Westbrook.
The problem is that the Nets have zero reason to want to do a sign-and-trade to help Irving and the Lakers which results in them getting Westbrook. Los Angeles wants to trade Westbrook for a reason and Kevin Durant definitely does not want to go down that road again.
However, the Los Angeles Lakers can loop in a third team to create one of the biggest trades in NBA history.
There is another star player whose future is currently up in the air in Bradley Beal. Beal can opt-out of his contract this summer and sign a new max contract. Beal said he already made his mind up about where he wants to play next year but won’t yet reveal it. Plus, you cannot blame Washington for hesitating to sign Beal to a max contract without any success.
With that storyline also in mind, Beal could force a trade from Washington, who would want to get something for Beal rather than letting him walk for free. This creates the following trade package:
This would be a monumental trade that makes sense for all parties involved considering the parameters. In the following pages, we will explain why the Los Angeles Lakers would say yes to this trade as well as the Nets and Wizards.
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.
Why the Brooklyn Nets and Washington Wizards would say yes:
Brooklyn Nets:
This is kind of a no-brainer for the Nets. They would lose Kyrie Irving but they would get someone who arguably fits better next to Kevin Durant in Bradley Beal. Irving is probably still the better player when he is at his absolute best but Beal is no slouch either and the Nets would arguably be more successful with Beal, assuming Ben Simmons comes back.
The real question in this trade is how the Wizards would handle it and why the Wizards wouldn’t just try to trade Beal for Irving.
Washington Wizards:
First of all, this entire trade is under the idea that Irving is forcing his way out of Brooklyn and wants to join the Los Angeles Lakers. With Irving flexing that leverage and Beal flexing his leverage, the Wizards don’t really have a choice.
And that is what it ultimately boils down to. With Beal having a player option he has the leverage this offseason. He can go to the Wizards and give them an ultimatum: let him opt out of his deal and they get nothing for him or he can opt into his player option and allow them to trade him to get picks in return.
Yes, they get a bad asset in Westbrook but the entire idea would be getting Westbrook to eventually buy him out and save money in the long term. If he was not an expiring contract it would make no sense.
The player options are the most important pieces of this trade for all sides involved. Since both Irving and Beal have player options, they could opt into their deals, execute the trade and sign extensions after the trade.
If they were outright free agents then it would hard-cap both the Nets and Lakers at the luxury tax, which would make it nearly impossible as both teams will go over that tax.