LeBron James (L) of the Los Angeles Lakers and Kyrie Irving of the Dallas Mavericks shake hands during Game 6 of the NBA Western Conference first-round playoffs between the Lakers and the Memphis Grizzlies at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, April 28, 2023. /CFP
Kyrie Irving of the Dallas Mavericks has reached out to LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers, hoping that the two can join hands again, The Athletic reported on Monday.
Irving and James were teammates at the Cleveland Cavaliers for three seasons between 2014 and 2017. They made the NBA Finals in every of those campaigns and won the title in 2016.
Irving was traded to the Mavericks by the Brooklyn Nets in the middle of the 2022-23 season. Though the team slipped quickly and failed to appear in the postseason in the end, Irving shouldn't take the most blame for the failure. He averaged 27 points, five rebounds, six assists and 2.9 triples at 39.2 percent per game as a Maverick. The team is willing to reach a long-term contract extension with him.
Kyrie Irving (#2) and Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks looks on in the game against the Charlotte Hornets at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, March 26, 2023. /CFP
James and the Lakers advanced to the playoffs via the play-in tournament and knocked out the Western Conference No. 2 Memphis Grizzlies and the defending champions Golden State Warriors on their way to the West Finals. The purple and gold were ultimately swept away by the Denver Nuggets to end their postseason ambitions.
James has averaged 24.5 points, 9.9 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game in the playoffs. Age and injury made him less dominant on the offensive end, but the 38-year-old managed to change his style of play dramatically to invest more in defense and attacking without the ball, still making key contributions on the court.
That's why it may not be that unrealistic for a combination of James, Irving and Luka Doncic to work. James and Irving have experience of success from their cooperation in Cleveland. Doncic, who has nearly completed his offensive skills off the dribble, can learn from James how to maintain offensive dominance in a different way. With the epic firepower provided by Doncic and Irving, James can save more strength on defense and other fronts.
Luka Doncic (#77) of the Dallas Mavericks guards LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers in the game at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, December 25, 2022. /CFP
However, no matter how dominant a team's best players are, the depth of their rotations is integral to deciding their performance in the playoffs. One of the major reasons that the Mavericks performed so poorly after acquiring Irving was the downgrade of their role players' quality. With such a thin roster, they will have to dig everything out of their piggy bank to trade for James.
Even if the Lakers miraculously agree to send James to the Mavericks, with the salaries of James ($46.9 million), Doncic ($40 million) and Irving (probably over $45 million), the Mavericks will have very limited space on their payroll to sign any quality role player to assemble a competitive squad.
Of course, there is always the scenario of Irving joining the Lakers as long as he remains an unrestricted free agent. Nonetheless, the purple and gold need to negotiate extensions with Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves, both of whom have performed surprisingly in the playoffs. Signing Irving wouldbe a daunting task for them as well.