After failed negotiations for a maximum contract extension, the Brooklyn Nets' all-star guard Kyrie Irving has asked Brooklyn to trade him. Irving was looking for a deal "in the neighborhood of a four-year, $198.5 million maximum extension available to him until June 30," according to ESPN. Before the season, around late June 2022, Irving was seeking a sign-and-trade opportunity amid free agency. Trade talks would fail, leaving Irving to opt into the final year of his deal, paying him $36.9 million on the season.
The Athletic's Shams Charania reports, "'I'm told the Lakers, Suns, and Mavericks have emerged as leading suitors in a potential deal for Irving.'"
For the Lakers, there's no surprise LeBron James wants to team up with his former 2016 championship-winning partner in crime. This could be the push that begins a championship-hopeful Lakers team to the playoffs, as they currently sit in 12th place in the western conference at 25-28. The Lakers look to get a reliable point guard, with concerns about Lakers guard Russell Westbrook re-emerging. It seems likely any Nets-Lakers deal would include a swap of Westbrook for Irving.
As for the Suns, GM James Jones is a former teammate of Irving's, and starting Chris Paul is obviously getting closer to retirement at age 37. A deal towards the Suns seems as if it would include "solid supporting pieces", such as veteran forward Jae Crowder, who hasn't played a minute this year, and defensive wing Cam Johnson. The Mavericks look to add Irving in a deal that could finally give generational talent Luka Doncic a second star. The Mavericks had looked at Irving during his sign-and-trade rumors. However, Tim Cato of The Athletic states, "'Some members of the team’s front office have hesitation that Irving would be a compatible long-term locker room fit for Doncic given their drastically different off-court personas.'"
Irving has been extremely controversial off the court, causing some teams to be hesitant to jump the gun and trade for him. Irving has been criticized by the NBA media for previous beliefs of a "flat Earth", promoting an anti-Semitic movie in November 2022, and playing last season as a "part-time player" due to his refusal to take the COVID-19 vaccine. Commentator Tony Kornheiser ripped into Irving, calling him a bad teammate. He stated, "Last year he didn’t go [to work]. He didn’t take a coronavirus shot. He knew the consequences, and he didn’t play any of the home games. Year after year, he does something. In Boston, he said ‘I’ll be here forever if you’ll have me,” and then an hour later he said ‘I don’t want to be here and I’m going to leave.” He would also go on to say you "cannot count" on Irving.
The next question to be asked in the midst of Kyrie Irving's request is whether or not this means all-star forward Kevin Durant will be next to leave Brooklyn. In late June 2022, Durant had requested a trade out of Brooklyn, but would rescind the request on August 23, after a "summer of uncertainty." Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN writes, "The bigger issue for Brooklyn becomes how All-NBA star Kevin Durant responds to Irving's trade request and if it causes him to rethink his future with the organization ahead of Thursday's deadline. Numerous teams are far more interested in how that situation could play out than in trying to inquire on Irving." To most NBA fans, the possibility of Irving being traded out of Brooklyn undoubtedly will lead Durant to want out too.
The trade deadline is on February 9, 2023, at 3 PM EST. With what looked like it was going to be a relatively boring and slow-paced deadline, the news of Irving's request shakes things up significantly. The all-star starter, Irving, is averaging 27.1 PPG, 5.3 APG, and 5.1 RPG on 40 games played. He is ruled out of his February 4 matchup against the Washington Wizards due to "calf soreness".
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