The Brooklyn Nets are going through challenging times right now, as one of their superstars seems to be on his way out of the team after a tumultuous 2021/22 NBA season. Kyrie Irving and the team are yet to reach an agreement on a contract extension, and this situation has opened the door for Irving to push for a move away from Barclays Center.
After reports touching on the complex situation between the Nets and Irving, rumors about his new teams haven’t stopped coming, and more people will try to shed light on this situation that has made a lot of noise around the league lately.
Just when people thought that the Nets’ controversies ended with their season, they keep stirring the pot and finding ways to raise eyebrows around the association. The rest of the teams are paying attention to these developments and not only for Kyrie but the other superstars the Brooklynites have on the roster.
Kevin Durant has been one of the best players of his generation and his name will always be attractive for every team in the league. Given how bad the Kyrie situation looks right now, other franchises have started rooting for Irving to leave the Nets and have some sort of domino effect that could put KD on the trade block.
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports that rival teams want to see Irving out of Brooklyn, which would make KD unhappy and ultimately force him to request a trade from the Nets.
There are teams rooting for Irving to opt-out and walk away from the Nets, believing it would give them a chance to cobble together trade packages to acquire Durant. As much as Durant asking out hangs over the Nets, there’s also the reality that four years on his contract will mean he has little, if any, voice on when or where he would be traded. This would be a small-market team’s dream, robbing a goliath of an MVP-level talent whose contractual circumstances would leave him little choice but to play for them.
This would be a huge move for anybody trying to bolster their ranks this offseason. Having Durant on your team automatically puts you on the contender list. This is still a long shot since the Kyrie situation isn’t finished yet, but a Kyrie exit from Brooklyn could be as or more impactful than Kevin Durant leaving the Golden State Warriors in Brooklyn.
Kevin Durant is expected to be involved in the Nets’ decision about Kyrie’s future, even though some reports suggest their relationship isn’t as close as many think. This is a big deal for the Nets, who started this project in 2019 and are yet to find success with Durant and Kyrie as their leaders.
Perhaps, keeping things like this, re-signing Kyrie, getting Ben Simmons in the best shape, and bringing the right role players to compete for the title, is the solution for this squad instead of blowing things up and trying to build with different stars.
