When Kevin Durant made his official request to be traded to the Brooklyn Nets it also signaled that the Nets would be exploring trades for point guard Kyrie Irving, and while many teams have been linked to Durant and/or Irving, one was tied to both.
However, the Los Angeles Lakers are only focused on a trade for Irving, and are not expected to pursue Durant.
According to The Athletic’s Jovan Buha and Sam Amick, the Lakers are not going to offer Anthony Davis as part of a package to land Durant, and without adding Davis to the offer there is no way the Lakers can offer an enticing deal to Brooklyn to land Durant.
The Lakers have been linked to Irving, who would reunite with LeBron James, whom he won a championship with while playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers, and a package built around Westbrook and multiple future first-round picks is being floated around as the offer to the Nets.
The Lakers will likely need to consider offering their unprotected first-round picks in either 2027 or 2029, or both, in a trade to land Irving, and that has been something that the team has not considered, refusing to add those picks in an effort to move guard Russell Westbrook.
However, the allure of forming a trio of James, Irving, and Davis may be too tempting to pass up.
