The Los Angeles Lakers have the look of a team that could make a serious run in the 2023 NBA Playoffs after advancing past the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round.
The Lakers dominated the Grizzlies in Game 6, beating them by 40 points behind brilliant performances from Anthony Davis and D’Angelo Russell. The Crypto.com Arena crowd was electric throughout the night, giving the players the energy they needed to close out Memphis.
The arena was packed with plenty of familiar faces, including Kyrie Irving, who was sitting front row for the action. Since the Dallas Mavericks missed the playoffs, Irving’s future has come into question and most wonder if he’s destined to reunite with LeBron James in Los Angeles.
However, it seems the Lakers are remaining firm on their position when it comes to potentially acquiring Irving, via Tim Cato of The Athletic:
Of course, there’s nothing notable about an out-of-season basketball player attending a basketball game in the city known as this league’s summer home. And no matter how close Irving might be to James, the Lakers are disinterested in pursuing him in free agency, say league sources, who like all unnamed sources in this article were granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. To acquire him would require jettisoning several deadline acquisitions who have helped revitalize their season and land them in a second-round series against the Golden State Warriors.
There were reports previously linking Irving to L.A., but those rumors also had the purple and gold being cold on the prospect of adding him. There’s no denying Irving’s star power and talent on the basketball floor, but the cost of adding him seems too much for the Lakers.
Los Angeles has flourished with several quality role players flanking James and Davis and the franchise would be wise to stick to the formula that’s helping them win games now. Things can change drastically in the NBA which means a path to adding Irving shouldn’t be dismissed, but it feels like the Lakers have finally learned their lesson and are going to keep what they have going.
LeBron James enjoyed teaming up with Kyrie Irving in All-Star Game
Fans got a small taste of what it would look like to see James and Irving together again during the 2023 All-Star Game. The duo looked like they could easily pick up where they left off, and James even admitted that he enjoyed playing with Irving again.
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