By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
The aftermath of the Kyrie Irving trade spills into the Los Angeles Lakers, specifically LeBron James confessing his disappointment on not reuniting with his former teammate at the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“I can’t sit here and say I’m not disappointed on not being able to land such a talent,” James told ESPN’s Michael Wilbon Monday, “Someone that I had great chemistry with and know I got great chemistry with on the floor that can help you win championships.”
James, 38, playing alongside Irving captured one of his four NBA championships in 2016 and is confident the 30-year-old point guard would help win championships for the Lakers as well if that was the case instead of the Dallas Mavericks reaching a deal with the Brooklyn Nets to pair him with Slovenian superstar Luka Doncic.
“My focus is shifted back to where it should be and that’s this club now and what we have in the locker room,” added James aiming to improve the current 25-29 record, distanced two games from the Play-In zone and three games from the Playoffs zone of the Western Conference.
“I don’t get too excited about the possibilities of things that can be,” furthered the four-time NBA champion regarding the approaching trade deadline, “I kind of envision myself on what it can, but I don’t invest it all the way into it until I know it’s happening. And when it does not happen, I’m back locked in on the job at hand.”
The Lakers reportedly offered Russell Westbrook and two first-round picks of the 2027 and 2029 NBA drafts to the Nets. However, the Mavs with Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith packed with an unprotected first-round pick in the 2029 NBA draft and two second-round picks in the 2027 to 2029 drafts ultimately landed Irving along with Markieff Morris.
“So we had an opportunity, our names were out there, the Lakers name was out there. We had an opportunity, but it didn’t happen. We move on and finish this season strong, try to get a bid into the postseason, where I feel if we go in healthy, we can compete with anybody,” added James.
On his way to becoming the all-time leading scorer of the NBA, the 2022-23 campaign with the Lakers has produced 30.0 points per contest over 43 appearances. He is 36 points away from overtaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and setting a new record for the most points by a single player in the league.
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