Should the Lakers really be giving out unprotected or lightly protected first-round picks in 2027 and 2029, years after the contracts of LeBron James and Anthony Davis expire? Is Irving—the most talented of the names mentioned—reliable enough for L.A. to rely on? “The Lakers are pot-committed,” the analyst continued, referencing a poker situation where a player lacks leverage after making aggressive early bets. “I’d do those two picks for Buddy and Turner. I like that more than Kyrie. That dude flat-out frightens me. But I’d take him over the pie-in-the-sky-let-Russ-cook option.”