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With Kawhi Leonard and Paul George expected to be back and healthy, the Los Angeles Clippers are expected to make a Finals run, with many viewing them as a favorite to win it all in 2022-23. The Clippers are built perfectly around Leonard and George, with star power, guard play, length at the wings, and even two proven big men. How much further, however, could this Clippers team go if they were to somehow trade for Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving?
On Monday, a report from The Athletic was released, claiming that the Nets and Kyrie Irving were at an impasse on his future with the NBA franchise that just got bounced in the first round. Three teams were listed as “interested suitors” if Irving is made available via a trade. Per The Athletic, those three teams are the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers, and LA Clippers.
In the second part of a two-part series, we'll look at why Kyrie Irving is not a good fit for the Clippers and three reasons why they must not go hard in pursuing a trade for him. In the first part, we looked at all the cases for trading for Irving and why the Clippers should pursue him in a deal.
Why Clippers should not go after Kyrie Irving
3. Durability
While Kyrie Irving is one of the most talented basketball players to ever walk the planet, he has faced significant issues with durability dating back to his lone year at Duke.
Irving's injury history in college is well-documented, playing in just 11 games his freshman season. Over the last three seasons with the Nets, Irving played just 20 regular-season games in 2019-20, 54 regular-season games in 2020-21, and just 29 games in 2021-22. Last season was due to the COVID-19 vaccine requirement that Kyrie refused to follow.
In general, Irving has struggled to stay healthy. Adding Irving to a Clippers core that already features Kawhi Leonard and Paul George could prove dangerous for opponents, but could also mean a lengthy injury report daily for the Clippers.
If you knew Kyrie Irving were healthy, it'd essentially be a no-brainer to trade for him. He's not a shoo-in to stay healthy, though, and his injury history is a big factor that you just can't ignore.
2. Sacrificing Depth
The LA Clippers have built a championship-caliber team around both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. They have the length to guard opponents' best players, the guards who can take the playmaking duties off Leonard and George's shoulders, and the genius head coach to get them to the finish line.
While both Leonard and George's injuries last season were considered fluky and deemed unlikely to happen again, both will need to be managed throughout the 2022-23 regular season in order to ensure their freshness heading into the playoffs.
If he's ready by training camp, Leonard will have been away from NBA basketball for 16 months as he recovered from surgery on a torn left ACL. There was hope Leonard would make his return at some point during the 2021-22 NBA season, but that never came to fruition.
The depth the Clippers currently have in Marcus Morris, Nicolas Batum, Robert Covington, Norman Powell, Terance Mann, and Luke Kennard will surely allow Leonard to pace himself following a year off while allowing George not to be overworked.
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If the Clippers were to pull the trigger on a trade with the Nets for Kyrie Irving, there's a chance three or even four of the pieces the Clippers consider depth would be sent out for him. Irving is an all-world talent who has dealt with his share of injuries.
Is the depth worth giving up on for Irving, knowing how much Leonard and George will probably need them?
1. Off-court Issues
It's no surprise to anyone at this point that chemistry issues just seem to arise anywhere Kyrie Irving goes. Irving reportedly blindsided the entire Cleveland Cavaliers organization when he requested a trade from the Cavs because he reportedly wasn't a fan of the media circus that followed LeBron James.
Focused on carving his own path and leaving before James left for the Lakers, Irving was traded to the Boston Celtics. He committed to staying in Boston for the long haul, but he played just two seasons there where his team underwhelmed and left for the Brooklyn Nets in free agency. By all accounts, the Celtics were better off once Irving left.
With the Nets, Irving and his decision not to get vaccinated was reportedly the root of James Harden's decision to ultimately walk out on Brooklyn. The Big Three of Kevin Durant, Harden, and Irving never saw its full potential, as the trio only played 16 games together across two seasons.
In sticking to his guns and wanting to be a “voice for the voiceless,” Kyrie Irving refused to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. He missed almost every home game until late March, but by that time, Harden was gone, and it was too late for the team to build any serious chemistry on the court.
Andrew Wiggins, who was also unvaccinated in the preseason, decided to get the COVID-19 vaccine before the regular season started. In turn, he wasn't limited at all by where he could and couldn't play. Wiggins getting the vaccine despite initially not wanting to showed his Warriors teammates his commitment to winning. A few months later, Wiggins and the Dubs are holding the 2022 Larry O'Brien Trophy up high. Wiggins, and his decision to get vaccinated, played a big part in that.
The Nets' season was full of off-the-court distractions involving Irving, and it made the basketball side of things, well, not fun. Is that something the Clippers want to get involved with? Can they rely on Tyronn Lue, who coached Irving to the 2016 NBA Championship, to manage the star guard?
Maybe, but it would be a huge risk and the Clippers would be just fine staying away.
