With the NBA schedule released earlier this week and we all trying to figure out how the season will play out, one stark question looms ominously and frustratingly over our predictions: How, please tell, will the Brooklyn Nets roster be at the opening look? Night?
Trade demand from Kevin Durant doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon, and the Kyrie Irving rumors continue to flutter recklessly through the NBA twittersphere, usually with the Los Angeles Lakers as the target for seemingly lost point guard favor with its current franchise.
A common potential trade is for Irving to go to the Lakers in exchange for a similarly competitive point guard, Russell Westbrook, in addition to one or both of the Lakers’ available first-round picks (2027 and 2029). However, it seems that this will not be enough to close the deal.
Rather than just looking for future draft picks and/or young players, the Nets are looking for an established player who can benefit the roster immediately, according to NBA reporter Marc Stein:
“The Nets’ current stance, sources say, is that they are unwilling to put Irving in a trade if the deal will only bring back future assets. They apparently want win-now talent in return to part ways with Irving, despite the turmoil that has been engulfing the networks for months.”
At this point in his career, Westbrook is widely viewed as a written-off asset that could even be a takeover candidate after a potential deal — not someone you bring to bolster your team.
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With the Lakers really lacking a desirable win-now player other than LeBron James and Anthony Davis, a third team would need to be brought in to facilitate a deal from Irving to Los Angeles if the Nets maintain their current stance. Stein also notes that Brooklyn’s vision of an Irving deal could be shaken if it were able to pull off a deal for Durant that significantly changes the composition of the roster.
Brooklyn has been incredibly patient with the Durant situation, so there’s no reason to think they’ll accept anything less than their dream scenario for Irving…at least for now. For the Lakers, who just renewed James by two years, they need to make significant changes to their roster if they want to participate in an incredibly strong Western Conference this season.
Irving seems like a logical addition to LA, as he not only serves as a secondary playmaker, but also serves as a much-needed off-ball shooter alongside James and Davis. For now, though, it seems the Lakers just don’t have what the Nets want in exchange for a player of Irving’s caliber.