The Los Angeles Lakers are one of many teams who have been tied in NBA rumors to Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. While Irving joining the Lakers makes a level of sense as my colleague laid out here, Durant to the Lakers remains an impossibility.
So far in free agency, the Lakers have taken a patient approach adding role players and letting Malik Monk leave in free agency. It would be surprising to see many of last season’s contributors return outside of the obvious in LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
If the team is able to move Russell Westbrook they will likely look to add a star to help carry the team and keep James rested and healthy heading into his twentieth season.
There isn’t any questioning the Lakers need to be patient and find value deals in free agency. The team is going to have to find players willing to take a discount to play with a franchise focused on finding its way back into championship relevance.
One move that would clearly make this team not only a title contender but the clear favorite would be trading for Kevin Durant. Durant is still clearly one of the best players in this league and paired with LeBron would make the Lakers a force.
As exciting as the idea might be, there are clear reasons Durant joining the Lakers isn’t practical.
This won’t happen for a franchise that should stay focused on building around the star they already have. Let’s dive into the three reasons why a Durant trade to LA won’t happen.