The NBA was jolted by Sunday’s news that the Brooklyn Nets had traded Kyrie Irving to the Dallas Mavericks. Naturally, this was bad news to the Los Angeles Lakers, who seemed to be among the leading contenders to land Irving, with LeBron James hinting that he’d welcome a reunion with his former Cleveland Cavaliers running mate. So, what happened?
One, while the Lakers reportedly offered Brooklyn a pair of first-round draft picks, the Nets also wanted players, not wanting to undercut a potentially deep playoff run this season. The second reason? Irving wanted to go to Los Angeles and Brooklyn owner Joe Tsai didn’t want to accommodate him.
“Latest report from @TheSteinLine confirms that one of Joe Tsai’s presumed objectives in a Kyrie trade was to not send him to his preferred landing spot: the Lakers,” Trevor Lane of LakersNation tweeted on Sunday, citing a report from Marc Stein.
Latest report from @TheSteinLine confirms that one of Joe Tsai’s presumed objectives in a Kyrie trade was to not send him to his preferred landing spot: the Lakers
— Trevor Lane (@Trevor_Lane) February 6, 2023
Basketball fans generally admired the Nets for their pettiness.
I aspire to be this big of a hater https://t.co/WCB4juI5Sq
— jxke. 🧸 (@cantguardjake) February 6, 2023
Lakers fans are PISSED about this. #ohwell #bleedgreen https://t.co/LW1DVY2x7D
— CelticsLife.com (@celticslife) February 6, 2023
https://twitter.com/NBACouchside/status/1622418849445421058
https://twitter.com/NBA_University/status/1622414577152540674
I can’t help but to respect it https://t.co/TCj388n9RK
— Zito (@_Zeets) February 6, 2023
From a human perspective, it’s easy to understand why the Nets would do this. Irving has been a consistent headache to Brooklyn since joining the team in 2019. The drama around his support of an antisemitic film earlier this season was only the latest in a seemingly never-ending stream of drama.
On the other hand, while it’s one thing for players and even coaches to be petty, it’s not a great look for a front office.
Now I didn’t want the Lakers package but this does speak volumes about how our front office and management does business, full of emotion. https://t.co/0cy42mqm55
— Brooklyn Netcast (@BrooklynNetcast) February 6, 2023
When trading Irving, the Nets had one job, getting the best offer for the team. It’s completely fair to say that the Los Angeles offer was not as good as the one offered by the Mavericks. So, there’s really no criticizing Tsai and company for not trading Irving to the Lakers. But if spiting Irving was even a remote thought, that’s not the sign of a strong front office, even if the right move was eventually reached.
[Trevor Lane on Twitter]
