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That said, I think that’s a slight overpay for Russell considering his inconsistency in the playoffs and the current free-agent market. How likely is signing (D’Angelo Russell) in the $22-$24 million range annually on a two-year contract? Is it a win-win for both sides heading into next season if it’s done as early as possible? - proposal is a reasonable outcome for both sides, as it aligns Russell’s contract with the timetables of James (signed through 2024 with a player option for 2025) and Davis (signed through 2024 with an early termination option for 2025, though he becomes extension eligible in August). But there are several hurdles that make it unrealistic unless Irving is willing to get his hands dirty and force his way to Los Angeles.

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Because of James’ affinity for Irving, and his potential leverage this offseason due to the uncertainty regarding his return, there’s a chance the Lakers cave and acquire Irving via trade or free agency.

While Irving is a much better player than Westbrook and a much better fit next to James and Davis, Los Angeles once again would be risking its future by prioritizing star power over depth and continuity. The Lakers already tried the three-star approach and failed. (Even then, rumors of Irving to the Lakers could pop back up around the 2024 trade deadline if that partnership doesn’t work out.) But as I reported back in mid-March, all indications from the Lakers are that Irving to Los Angeles is nothing more than a pipe dream. Irving to Los Angeles remains a theoretical possibility until he signs a multiyear deal with Dallas or another team. In that scenario, the Lakers’ roster would probably be composed of James, Davis, Irving, Austin Reaves, a taxpayer mid-level exception signing and a bunch of minimum contracts. To even make that a possibility, Los Angeles must willingly gut its depth to create cap space. More realistically, Irving would have to take a substantial discount to sign with the Lakers in free agency, something he’s shown no willingness to do yet. That also would hard-cap the Lakers, forcing them to make difficult decisions and likely resulting in them losing several key players from last season’s team (Schröder, Lonnie Walker IV and possibly Hachimura).

But that would require the Mavericks to play ball - and The Athletic’s Tim Cato reported Dallas is unlikely to do so.

Ideally, they acquire him via sign-and-trade with Dallas. It’s certainly possible, but there are so many factors that have to go in the Lakers’ favor for them to land Irving. What’s the realistic percentage that Kyrie Irving is a Laker this summer? - is a difficult question to answer, but if I had to peg a percentage, I’d go low - somewhere in the 10 to 15 percent range.

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I think they run it back, or try to upgrade the point guard/lead ballhandler spot (Kyrie Irving, Fred VanVleet, Trae Young, etc.). They will only pursue a third star if they deem that player of a certain caliber and believe he can fit next to James and Davis. The tentative plan for the Lakers is to run it back with as much of this past season’s group as they can possibly afford under the new, stricter collective bargaining agreement. Most famously, it was the dilemma in 2021 that led to the misguided Russell Westbrook trade. 28 pick to Oklahoma City for Dennis Schröder - a half-measure that was an attempt to solve their supplementary ballhandling conundrum. It was the question again in 2020 when they traded Danny Green and the No. It’s basically been the question for Los Angeles each offseason, dating back to the summer of 2019 when the Lakers traded for Anthony Davis and tried to land Kawhi Leonard in free agency in an attempt to form a big three of James, Leonard and Davis. (Note: Questions have been edited for brevity and clarity.)Īre the Lakers more interested in retaining everyone who played in the playoffs and adding someone like Myles Turner (2023 first-round pick, Bamba, Beasley)? Or gutting their team to go all in for a third star (like DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, Kyrie Irving or Trae Young)? - from LeBron James’ future, this is the Lakers’ question of the summer: Do they pursue a third star, or run it back with the group that made the Western Conference finals?

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