Kyrie Irving Considered Reuniting With LeBron James On Lakers: ‘He’s A Great Friend Of Mine, A Great Brother Of Mine’

May 3, 2024

Kyrie Irving told NBA writer Mellisa Rohlin of Fox Sports that he considered reuniting with LeBron James on the Los Angeles Lakers.

Irving was a free agent last summer. The NBA champion re-signed with the Dallas Mavericks.

“Everything was considered,” Irving said. “He’s a great friend of mine, a great brother of mine. We obviously played together [in Cleveland]. Everybody knows our history. But there were so many different factors in between. When it comes to business decisions, you have to ask the GMs, the presidents why certain things didn’t work out.”

LeBron wanted the Lakers to trade for Irving last season when Irving requested a trade from the Brooklyn Nets. However, the Nets traded Irving to the Mavericks.

The Lakers had a chance to sign Irving last summer, but they didn’t.

The Mavericks are up 3-2 on the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the 2024 playoffs.

Meanwhile, the Lakers lost to the Denver Nuggets in five games.

“I know I can speak for myself that I’m grateful someone took a chance on me,” Irving said. “Dallas welcomed me with open arms. For me, it wasn’t time to think about the ‘what ifs.’ It was time for me to put my best foot forward. That’s what I did. It’s hard to think of the ‘what ifs,’ the allure, the thoughts of it.”

Irving averaged 25.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.2 assists for the Mavericks during the regular season while shooting 49.7% from the field, 41.1% from beyond the arc and 90.5% from the free-throw line.

He has developed a strong relationship with Dallas superstar Luka Doncic.

“Initially, I knew that [me and Luka] were going to have some growing pains,” Irving said. “But I just came with the best intentions. It was the first time for me getting traded midseason and having to pick my family up, transition. But I’ve alway respected Luka.

“We had different times that we got a chance to talk at All-Star weekend. He was a younger player, so I knew of him. But I also knew he was a killer on the court. And I knew what I could expect when we were both healthy. I went in with a great belief that this could really work.”