NBA Insider on Kyrie Irving Signing with Lakers: 'Nothing More Than A Pipe Dream'

Despite endless noise surrounding the prospect of Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving becoming a member of the Los Angeles Lakers this summer, the chances of that happening seem to be low.

With pre-NBA Draft workouts already underway, one of the bigger dominoes to fall this summer will be the unrestricted free agency of Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving. The draft takes place on June 22, and free agency will follow shortly after that on June 30.

Irving, who the Mavericks acquired prior to this season's trade deadline, isn't likely to have many suitors on the open market, at least not for the contract he’s seeking. This gives the Mavs the upper hand on giving the duo of Irving and Luka Doncic another go for a full season.

But, if a team on Irving's preferred destination list, say the Los Angeles Lakers, doesn't have the necessary cap space, it doesn't mean they're out of the running. A deal would likely require the Lakers to get a lot of assistance from the Mavs, and that scenario doesn’t seem likely.

On Friday, The Athletic's Jovan Buha reported that desipte the rumors and smoke surrounding a possible Irving-Lakers pairing, that noise is nothing but a ‘pipe dream.’

"If I had to peg a percentage, I’d go low — somewhere in the 10 to 15 percent range. It’s certainly possible, but there are so many factors that have to go in the Lakers’ favor for them to land Irving," Buha wrote on Irving's chances of landing in Los Angeles.

"Ideally, they acquire him via sign-and-trade with Dallas. But that would require the Mavericks to play ball — and The Athletic’s Tim Cato reported Dallas is unlikely to do so."

As Buha pointed out, for Irving to sign outright with Los Angeles, the eight-time All-Star would need to take a 'substantial discount' while the Lakers would need to blow up their entire roster outside of LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Austin Reaves, who all reports say will be back next season.

Though James would seemingly want to reunite with his former running mate, the organization's plan sounded like it’s on the opposite end of the spectrum during exit interviews, as Lakers VP of basketball operations and GM Rob Pelinka spoke the team's intention to 'keep our core of young guys together.'

"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," Buha wrote.

"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."

If Irving ends up desiring a sign-and-trade to the Lakers or elsewhere, the ball is in the Mavericks' court on whether or not to oblige. And by the sounds of it, Mark Cuban, Nico Harrison, and company have no plans of ‘playing ball’ unless it benefits Dallas both in the present and future. 

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