Kyrie Irving is an enigma, the longer his career has gone on, the more unpredictable Irving has become. One of the biggest stories of the season in 2021-22 was Irving’s inability to play thanks to this refusal to take the Covid-19 vaccine, something that only got resolved a few weeks before the playoffs. It certainly cost the Nets valuable time to gel as a unit, and Kyrie himself has admitted that it became something of a distraction.
Irving’s contract with Brooklyn runs only till 2022-23 and the last year of the contract is a player option. Irving has said that he will be staying with the Nets and his relationship with Kevin Durant also seems to be fine despite the many obstacles the Nets faced. However, next season will bring a huge question mark about his future, and the Nets have to decide what deal they want to offer Kyrie.
As per Brian Windhorst, Irving could be eligible for a massive 5 years deal which could be worth almost $250 million, but the Nets might want to give him a shorter contract.
“Irving can ask for a five-year contract up to $248 million. There have been some questions in the league as to whether the Nets will try to get concessions from him, such as agreeing to a four-year deal that would align with Durant’s current contract and be worth in the $200-million range.
“Or, whether Brooklyn could try to protect itself with salary tied to games played; Irving has averaged 55 games per season over his 11-year career. In each of the past two seasons, Irving stepped away from the team for non-injury reasons. In 2020-21, he took an unauthorized leave of absence and missed seven games; and this season it was due to his decision not to get vaccinated.”
The Nets have leveraged their future in opening up a championship window with Durant and Irving, so a contract is likely to be offered, even if Stephen A. Smith thinks it shouldn’t be longer than a year.
Durant has an extension with the Nets coming worth almost $200 million over 4 years, so it would make sense to offer Irving something similar. In any case, it promises to be interesting seeing how the Nets manage it considering they have Ben Simmons to pay as well as putting a roster around their stars.
