The Mavericks intend to re-sign point guard Kyrie Irving in free agency, and per Marc Stein of The Stein Line, would have no interest in a sign-and-trade deal that would involve Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell.
Despite coming off the bench, Russell has expressed a desire to return to the Lakers. “I mean, it was tough,” Russell said of playing a reserve role in the West finals, via Matt Peralta of Lakers Nation. “It was tough to agree with it obviously, but in a short period of time to not become a distraction to your teammates and to everybody else that’s preparing just like you to get the one goal done which is win.
“I knew that was where you had to be professional. You can’t be a distraction at this point of the season and things like that, so that’s kind of how I went about it. I wanted to be professional and try to dominate my minutes when there were minutes for me.”
- There are no signs that pursuing Irving is on the Lakers’ offseason list of priorities, per Stein.
- The Lakers are hopeful to retain guard Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura in free agency, per Stein, echoing some previous reports. Both Reaves and Hachimura will be restricted free agents, giving the Lakers a chance to match outside offers.
- We have more Lakers news right here and all the time on our Lakers page.
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