"LeBron will only put him in position to do that... Kyrie has not proven to be a great leader" - Draymond Green claims LA Lakers won't be able to beat Dubs even if they get Kyrie Irving

Draymond Green is confident the Golden State Warriors will defeat the LA Lakers even if LeBron James and company acquire Kyrie Irving from Brooklyn. He lauded James' leadership and acknowledged that they will certainly be title contenders while asserting that they still wouldn't get past the Dubs.

Draymond Green has been on a Twitter rampage ever since the Warriors won the 2022 championship. He brought up the receipts and cold takes and is calling everyone out on social media who doubted the Dubs' chances of winning the title. He called the Warriors "better than everybody else" during their championship parade in San Francisco and is now doubling down on the statement.

Draymond Green spoke with Lucas Shaw of Bloomberg to discuss his latest title run, running a successful podcast, the concept of "new media" and other basketball-related topics. Shaw asked him if adding Kyrie Irving to the LA Lakers would make them contenders and Green responded:

"With LeBron, if you give him someone like Kyrie... they'll have a chance because of the way Kyrie can score the basketball. LeBron will only put him in position to do that. Kyrie has not proven to be a great leader. LeBron will put an umbrella over that. If you can do what you're good at, you have LeBron leading."

Kyrie Irving has never been the leader of a locker room despite playing point guard. He has a reputation for being unreliable and a bad teammate. His only stint as the lone superstar on the team was with the Boston Celtics, and that experiment failed. On the other hand, King James has been an excellent leader on and off the floor. He is often called "LeGM" for his de facto general manager role in the front office.

In fact, the only time Kyrie Irving has seen success in the postseason was with James. He won the 2016 title and made the NBA Finals for three straight years (2015-17) with the Cleveland Cavaliers. His partnership with Kevin Durant hasn't worked out well either, so if any superstar has a chance to make it work with Irving, it is LeBron James.

Draymond Green, however, is not fearful of the dynamic duo reuniting in his Pacific Division. He added:

"They could contend, but they won't beat us."

According to most sportsbooks and analysts, the Golden State Warriors are the overwhelming favorites to win the 2023 NBA title. Hence, it might sound "cocky" or "overconfident" to some fans, but Draymond Green and the Dubs have earned the right to talk trash to every other franchise.

Could Draymond Green and the Golden State Warriors defeat the LA Lakers with LeBron James and Kyrie Irving?

Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors against Kyrie Irving during the 2017 NBA Finals

The Golden State Warriors will likely not add any more big-name stars to their roster while the LA Lakers will hypothetically swap Russell Westbrook for Kyrie Irving. After his horrific season last year, Westbrook is considered a liability on both ends of the floor. He turns the ball over a lot, shoots inefficiently, and is unassertive on the defensive end.

Kyrie Irving, on the other hand, is one the most efficient scorers in the league and has a bag way deeper than Russ. He doesn't turn the ball as much and is a 50-40-90 club member. He isn't any better defensively but has shown more effort than Westbrook on that end of the floor.

On paper, LeBron James would get his old running mate back and Irving would be a significant improvement over Westbrook. James' playmaking skills would elevate both of them. Another important factor is that Irving just turned 30 years old while Westbrook is nearly 34.

However, the LA Lakers still won't be better than the reigning champions. The Golden State Warriors are expected to be even better next season. Klay Thompson will be healthier and better defensively while the young guns develop into valuable pieces. Steph Curry and Draymond Green aren't showing any signs of aging or slowing down and the team is firing on all cylinders. Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins have become stars and Steve Kerr has proven to be one of the best coaches of all-time.

Even with Irving in the lineup, the LA Lakers' issues of age and lack of defense wouldn't get solved. The Warriors, on the other hand, weren't even fully healthy during their title run.

Kyrie Irving might never arrive in Los Angeles to begin with, but even in this hypothetical potential matchup, the Warriors would likely win against the LA Lakers.