There’s never been a doubt about the talent. It’s the other stuff that Kyrie Irving brings to the table that’s concerning.
Kyrie Irving wants out of Brooklyn. He’s demanding a trade, joining James Harden and Kevin Durant before him who also requested a one-way ticket out of Barclay’s Center. Harden is now in Philadelphia while Durant is still on the team but nursing a sprained MCL.
Irving didn’t play in Saturday’s 125-123 victory over the Washington Wizards, a game in which the Nets trailed by as many as 18 points but rallied to win behind 44 points from Cam Thomas.
Irving’s demand is motivated by money and he says he will leave in Free Agency if he’s not traded before next Thursday’s February 9 deadline.
Pump The Breaks
Even if a team could make the deal work financially, why on earth would they do it? He has a well-documented injury history, his defense has been questioned, and in the past 24 months he’s had a two-week unexcused absence, missed numerous home games due to the COVID vaccine and been placed on an antisemitism suspension. If the Nets aren’t willing to pony up $47 million, maybe the rest of the league should take notes.
Irving wants to be a Laker but they can only offer him $34 million per year and that’s a far cry from the $47 million he wants. What should concern Laker fans is that owner Jeanie Buss and General Manager Rob Pelinka haven’t exactly done well since they won the NBA “Bubble” title in 2020. They’ve made bad move after bad move since, the worst being the Russell Westbrook deal. Although he’s done better as a sixth man, he’s a shell of his former self. This is exactly the kind of deal that would bail out the Nets and extend the Lakers stretch of mediocrity.
Besides the Lakers, who else is interested
There are six other teams who have around $30 million in cap space but those are young teams in rebuilding mode, not exactly a great fit for Irving. It’s up to Irving to convince the Nets he really will walk in free agency. Then Brooklyn can decide to keep him or say goodbye in June.
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