Kendrick Perkins: Kyrie Irving Trade Would Make LeBron James, Lakers West Favorites
ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins believes that the Los Angeles Lakers would become the Western Conference favorites if they landed Brooklyn Nets point guard Kyrie Irving, who has requested a trade.
"If [the Lakers] get Kyrie Irving, I mean damn: they should be considered to winning the West," Perkins said on ESPN (h/t Talkin' NBA) on Friday.
Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic reported the Irving news on Friday, just six days before the NBA's trade deadline. He added that Irving plans to leave in free agency this summer if the Nets do not deal him.
Irving is scheduled to become a free agent next offseason when his $37 million 2022-23 player option expires. Therefore, the Nets are backed into a corner here as they risk losing Irving for nothing at all if they don't trade him by Thursday.
Perkins' comments don't seem all that far-fetched assuming LeBron James and Anthony Davis stay healthy. The 36-16 Denver Nuggets, who are led by back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokić and hold a four-game lead over the rest of the West field, probably are the conference favorites right now.
But the West appears largely wide open. The second-place Memphis Grizzlies are 3-7 in their last 10 games. The defending champion Golden State Warriors are at .500. The New Orleans Pelicans have lost 10 straight.
At 25-28, the Lakers are just outside a play-in spot right now, but they are just three games behind the Dallas Mavericks for fourth in the West. Adding Irving could easily help vault the Lakers into a top-four spot in the playoffs.
For now, Irving is a Net, but his Brooklyn tenure appears to be nearing its immediate end. The Lakers, obviously, are a team to watch. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski notably reported last June that L.A. was the only team inquiring with the Nets about a potential sign-and-trade for Irving.
