Much to the apparent chagrin of LeBron James, the Lakers ultimately did not win the Kyrie Irving sweepstakes.
Many thought Irving was bound for Los Angeles when the star point guard requested a trade out of Brooklyn on Friday. Irving probably liked the idea of linking back up with James, his former Cleveland Cavaliers teammate, and the Lakers figured to be one of the teams most aggressive in its pursuit of the eight-time All-Star.
Unfortunately for the Lakers, they had to watch the conference rival Dallas Mavericks vastly improve their lineup through an Irving blockbuster. And to make matters worse for the Purple and Gold, one report indicated Los Angeles never stood a chance to acquire Irving from Brooklyn.
This chain of events prompted a cryptic tweet from James, whose Lakers sit 13th in the West entering Monday's action.
"Maybe It's Me," James tweeted Sunday night.
Perhaps James was reacting to the news that Nets owner Joe Tsai had a "presumed objective" to not send Irving to Los Angeles. But if this rumor is true, it probably had more to do with Tsai's ax to grind with Irving rather than anything related to James.
As for the Lakers, they have until 3 p.m. ET on Thursday to improve their roster through trade.
