Explainer: Why the Nets might not trade Kyrie Irving

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports activities

The distinction between now and final offseason is that the Lakers do current a respectable menace to signal Irving in free company. They may generate $30 million in cap area to signal him, however there isn’t a assure they head into the offseason with cap area. They may nonetheless make trades now that keep them over the cap this summer, giving them present salaries they might flip in future trades. This may additionally enable the Lakers to have a bigger MLE and re-sign their high free brokers. In the event that they took the cap area path to signal Irving, the remainder of the roster would largely comprise minimal gamers, giving them insufficient depth that has burdened them these previous two seasons.

With these components in thoughts, it most likely makes extra sense for the Lakers to accumulate Irving in a commerce than with cap area. But when the commerce deadline passes and the Lakers make separate trades that preserve them over the cap for the 2023 offseason, then Irving may not have any respectable choices in free company. At that time, not solely would his greatest monetary choice be to return to the Nets, but in addition to take no matter assure stipulation-laden extension the Nets supplied him.