LeBron James won a championship with Kyrie Irving for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016. After the guard’s trade request, there could be a reunion, even if LeBron is keeping a low profile.
“That’s a question for Rob [Pelinka, GM der Lakers, Anm. d. Red.]” James rebuffed after the New Orleans loss when asked about a possible Lakers trade for Kyrie Irving. “You’ll see him when we get back to LA.” James noted that he told the reports before Weeks said he would not speak for Lakers management: “My job is to prepare for games and win games with my colleagues.”
Indirectly, however, LeBron spoke out for Kyrie. “It’s a stupid one [Wortlaut: duh] Question when you talk about a player like him,” said the 38-year-old when asked if he would like to play with Irving again.
The Lakers, along with the Mavericks, Suns and Clippers, are considered the most likely buyers for Irving, who dropped the bombshell on Friday and, according to media reports, demanded a trade. According to Adrian Wojnarowski (ESPN) the Lakers would have to dig deep into their pockets for Irving and part with their two first-round picks (2027, 2029) if they want to get their hands on the playmaker.
The Lakers were said to be interested back in the summer when Irving considered exiting his contract early before exercising his $36.5 million player option. The background was probably that no team could offer the point guard a maximum contract (Lakers) or wanted to. Irving would like to be paid again this year, according to media reports, Uncle Drew would like a new four-year contract worth almost 200 million dollars.
Kyrie Irving: His stats for the Brooklyn Nets
| season | games | FG % | 3P% | FT% | REB | BRANCH | STL | TOV | PTS |
| 2019/20 | 20 | 47.8 | 39.4 | 92.2 | 5.2 | 6.4 | 1.4 | 2.6 | 27.4 |
| 2020/21 | 54 | 50.6 | 40.2 | 92.2 | 4.8 | 6.0 | 1.4 | 2.4 | 26.9 |
| 2021/22 | 29 | 46.9 | 41.8 | 91.5 | 4.4 | 5.8 | 1.4 | 2.5 | 27.4 |
| 2022/23 | 40 | 48.6 | 37.4 | 88.3 | 5.1 | 5.3 | 1.0 | 2.3 | 27.1 |
