Barring a complete reversal of the first three games, the Denver Nuggets will eventually defeat the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals.
The Nuggets lead the series 3-0 with Game 4 set for Tuesday night.
Lakers fans have placed a lot of the blame on starting point guard D’Angelo Russell, who has been a detriment to his team on both ends of the court throughout the series.
That could lead to the Lakers front office making a move for controversial star Kyrie Irving, who has struggled to retain the form that helped lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to their only title in franchise history in 2016.
A reunion with LeBron James could be in the mix, according to ESPN’s NBA insider Brian Windhorst.
“I could just see Kyrie [Irving] ready to come, and the feel on like, ‘Look, we just got to the conference finals, imagine if we replace [D’Angelo] Russell with Kyrie?'” Windhorst said on his podcast, The Hoop Collective.
“The Lakers have fallen for this before. The way this is ending, I think it’s increasing the chances of it happening,” he said.
Windhorst admitted it would require some magic with the cap space to make it happen, but it’s possible.
“It would take a little bit of maneuvering, and Kyrie would probably have to not take the max, or [the Lakers] would have to work on something with Dallas, but they can get there,” Windhorst said. “They can keep [Austin] Reeves and get Kyrie.”
Only time will tell if the Lakers make the move for the oft-maligned star.
