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NBA teams hope Irving leaves Brooklyn so they can nab… Kevin Durant

Since the announcement earlier this week of the obstacles encountered by Kyrie Irving and the Nets in negotiating a new deal for Uncle Drew, the number of speculations has logically skyrocketed on the sidelines of the NBA Draft which will take place Thursday evening. And secretly, several NBA franchises would love to see Kyrie leave Brooklyn. But not to get him back, to get Mister Kevin Durant back. What?!?

When KD signed his very big contract extension with the Nets in August 2021, he probably did not imagine a scenario in which James Harden no longer plays by his side almost a year later, all with a Kyrie Irving who could simply decide to play elsewhere. A lot a lot, a lot many things have obviously happened in the last ten months in Brooklyn, and the championship project started in 2019 perhaps seems more threatened than ever today. In a paper recently published on ESPNbreaking king Adrian Wojnarowski gave an update on the Nets’ current situation, highlighting the impact of a potential Irving departure on KD’s desire to stay in Brooklyn. As a reminder, Uncle Drew and the Nets are today in an “impasse” concerning the extension of Kyrie, an impasse which would have originated from the desire of the New York franchise to offer a short contract to Irving instead of a deal. on the long term that Drew is logically looking for. General manager Sean Marks had refused during his end-of-season press conference to commit to a long extension with Kyrie, nothing more understandable when you know that Irving has only played 103 games out of 226 in three seasons. Except on the other hand, the Nets also know they’re playing with fire a bit given the strong relationship that exists between Irving and Durant.

“The Nets want to stay ‘disciplined’ on Kyrie Irving’s extension. […] But they also take the risk of alienating Kevin Durant, who could reconsider his engagement with Brooklyn in the event of Irving’s departure. »

– Adrian Wojnarowski

There is a world where Kyrie Irving does not extend with the Nets and where Kevin Durant finds himself alone with a Ben Simmons who has not played all season. If this scenario were to come to fruition, there is a way that KD will reassess his current situation in Brooklyn until he potentially asks for a transfer. A scenario that several franchises would like to see if we are to believe Adrian Wojnarowski, because obviously it would offer an unexpected opening to possibly afford the talents of one of the best players in the world for years to come. As Woj recalls, however, Durant is tied to Brooklyn for the next four seasons, so his future largely depends on what the Nets want him to do, regardless of his superstar status. If KD asks for a transfer in the not too distant future, the New York franchise could very well say no and continue to build their project on Durant despite Irving’s departure. A situation that would obviously not be ideal, but at the same time Easy Money Sniper does not seem to be the type to play Ben Simmons or flout his basketball like James Harden to get his exit ticket. KD respects basketball way too much for that.

So let’s be clear, we’re not there yet. According to Adrian Wojnarowski and other sources familiar with the matter, the Nets and Kyrie Irving are looking to find a solution to this contractual impasse, and an extension remains the most likely scenario at the time of these lines. As we know, in negotiations, each party begins by putting on the table what it wants in an ideal world, and then it works around it to try to find the best compromise. The discussions between the Brooklyn franchise and Kyrie seem to be going this way, with the objective of extending the adventure so that everyone is happy and thus allow the Nets to play for the title next season. Otherwise, who knows what could happen…

Behind the scenes of the League, several leaders hope to see the Brooklyn project completely explode in order to have a chance to recover Kevin Durant. The latter was committed for the rest of his prime with the New York team, so is there really a scenario where KD wears another jersey by 2026? We would not bet on it at the time of these lines, but we know that the NBA is a world where practically everything is possible.

Source texte : ESPN

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