The Los Angeles Lakers have been reportedly trying to trade Russell Westbrook for Brooklyn Nets star guard Kyrie Irving for the last couple of weeks, but to no avail so far.
Some feel that LeBron James may be pressuring the team to do whatever it takes to acquire Irving, even if it means mortgaging lots of their future.
As has been the case for a while, plenty of people have accused James and Klutch Sports of having an outsized amount of influence on the Lakers’ personnel decisions, to the point of strong-arming them.
Late on the night of July 3, team governor Jeanie Buss issued this tweet that many felt had some type of hidden meaning and message.
Some felt it was an attack directed towards James disguised as an expression of love for the late Kobe Bryant.
But Buss claims it was nothing of the sort.
Via Lakers Daily:
“Now, Buss has finally made an effort to clear up the debate about the tweet. She spoke with Mark Medina of NBA.com to talk about that and more.
“‘We’re getting ready to start promoting our 10-part docuseries on Hulu and we’re immersed in all things Lakers,’ she said when asked about the tweet related to Bryant. ‘There are so many people I miss. But the person I miss the most is Kobe. We miss his voice, his friendship and everything that was taken away from us when we lost him. What I know is Laker fans feel the same way I do.
“‘So when I feel down like that, I know when I say something, the response that I get makes me feel not alone. That’s how a community comes together to grieve. This grieving process with losing Kobe will go on for the rest of my life. It’s a void that can never be filled and was never expected.
“‘When Phil left to go to the Knicks, the NBA made us sign a letter because we’re on two different teams. He said, “This means I can’t help you anymore. But you always have Kobe. Kobe has your back. Talk to him if you ever need advice. You’ll always have Kobe.” That’s what Phil said to me. So, the idea that we don’t always have Kobe is hard to accept.’
“She was then asked about the belief that some people had that the tweet was a way for Buss to criticize James without calling him out by name.
“No,’ she said. ‘It was that my heart was full of sadness. You look to people surrounding you that feel the same way to commiserate. That’s all it was. It wasn’t intended at anything other than I had sorrow in my heart and I was trying to lighten my load.’”
Obviously, whether…
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