Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka made some interesting comments at media day on Monday in regards to Kyrie Irving and Donovan Mitchell and the value of Los Angeles' first round picks.

“If you make that trade, it has to be the right one, you have one shot to do it,” Rob Pelinka said. “So we’re being very thoughtful around the decisions on when and how to use draft capital in a way that will improve our roster.”

The Lakers only own two first round picks for the rest of the decade, their 2027 and 2029 first round picks. Therefore, there was careful consideration around those picks, but Pelinka still admits he may have used them to move the needle on his roster.

ESPN's Dave McMenamin said on The Hoop Collective Podcast that he believes those picks could have been used on Kyrie Irving or Donovan Mitchell.

“I’ve been told that had the Lakers been able to acquire, Kyrie Irving, or the Lakers been able to acquire Donovan Mitchell, either of those players, the Lakers were willing and able to move both those [first-round] picks to do it.”

It is taking serious draft capital to acquire star players these days. The Jazz received a combined seven first round picks in the Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert deals. This altered the market for star talent and is one of the reasons why Kevin Durant didn't find a landing spot.

The Lakers missed out on Donovan Mitchell, and it looks like Kyrie Irving is staying in Brooklyn. The Lakers will have to improve from last year in order to make the playoffs.