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Kyrie Irving opts in, won’t become free agent

HoopsHype
·15 min read
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Kyrie Irving: Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving is opting into his $37 million player option for the 2022-23 season, @TheAthletic @Stadium has learned. Irving is bypassing on multiple opt-in and trade scenarios to fulfill his four-year commitment to the Nets and Kevin Durant.
Source: Twitter @ShamsCharania

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Tommy Beer @TommyBeer
Kyrie coming back to Brooklyn!!
Nets fans:
pic.twitter.com/vNCCpYaN30 – 6:44 PM

Matthew Tynan @Matthew_Tynan
I’m gonna take that Kyrie quote and frame it – 6:41 PM

Anthony Puccio @APOOCH
Well, the KD-Kyrie era lives to see another year. – 6:41 PM

Kellan Olson @KellanOlson
Got worked into a shoot by Kyrie that’s tough – 6:41 PM

Sam Vecenie @Sam_Vecenie
The benefit of living in Australia: sleeping through all of the Kyrie Irving stuff today and then waking up to learn that he has just decided to opt-in. – 6:40 PM

James Edwards III @JLEdwardsIII
I’m not going to lie, I had a theory Kyrie would opt out, go to the Lakers and LBJ would wire him the difference 😂😂😂 – 6:39 PM

John Karalis @John_Karalis
What exactly is the tomorrow Kyrie is leading us into by opting into his contract? – 6:39 PM

Shams Charania @ShamsCharania
Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving is opting into his $37 million player option for the 2022-23 season, @TheAthletic @Stadium has learned. Irving is bypassing on multiple opt-in and trade scenarios to fulfill his four-year commitment to the Nets and Kevin Durant. – 6:36 PM

Tommy Beer @TommyBeer
Kyrie and KD have only played 58 games together in Brooklyn… if that ends up being the final number – my god…
imagine trying to tell a Nets fan in 2019 that Durant would comeback healthy, yet he and Kyrie share the floor less than 60 times as teammates – 6:24 PM

Tommy Beer @TommyBeer
48 hours until Kyrie Irving has to decide whether or not to opt into the final year of his contract.
72 hours until the start of free agency.
Should be a fun few days.
Buckle up. – 6:03 PM

Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Nets brinksmanship: Reportedly willing to lose both Irving, Durant rather than cave nba.nbcsports.com/2022/06/27/net… – 5:01 PM

Brady Hawk @BradyHawk305
Ummmmmmmmm
Kyrie Irving-Heat strictly X’s and O’s basketball fit piece tomorrow? – 4:49 PM

Henry Abbott @TrueHoop
Are we all rowing in the same direction, or are you still on the dock? Given the grueling nature of the NBA season, @David Thorpe sees negative value in Kyrie as a teammate. BRING IT IN with @jshector https://t.co/FC6KfDUVzF pic.twitter.com/ZmuTiqvSJM – 4:27 PM

Chris Sheridan @sheridanhoops
Amid Kyrie to #Lakers speculation, sportsbook have LAL anywhere from 12-1 to 18-1 to win 2023 NBA championship. #Nets still listed at 6-1 to 8-1. … Should be an interesting Wednesday. Irving one of the few players who would walk from $30+ million guaranteed. – 4:24 PM

Jonathan Feigen @Jonathan_Feigen
New #Rockets at #TXSN – NBA free agency 2022: Guard class starts with James Harden, Kyrie Irving ift.tt/RNx3Fan – 4:19 PM

Sam Quinn @SamQuinnCBS
I’m writing about the finances of Kyrie Irving to the Lakers. Basically: how much would he have to give up by coming to LA, and what mechanisms would the Lakers have to pay him?
Before I dive in… does anyone have any specific questions they want addressed in the story? – 4:18 PM

Law Murray @LawMurrayTheNU
Fully expecting a Lakers starting lineup of Russell Westbrook, Kyrie Irving, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and the 2022 version of Devean George – 3:49 PM

Anthony Chiang @Anthony_Chiang
NEW: How Kyrie Irving’s situation could impact the Heat, as teams around the league wait to see what happens with Irving, Kevin Durant and the Nets miamiherald.com/sports/nba/mia… Also, Nikola Jovic introduced in Miami as he prepares for his summer league debut in the coming days – 3:49 PM

Barry Jackson @flasportsbuzz
NEW from (mostly) @Anthony Chiang and me: How Kyrie Irving’s situation could impact Heat, with Durant looming. And Nikola Jovic introduced in Miami at midday: miamiherald.com/sports/nba/mia… – 3:47 PM

Adam Spolane @AdamSpolane
If the Nets get nothing in return for Kyrie Irving they will have only around $7 million in cap space due to the large contracts of Kevin Durant, Ben Simmons, Joe Harris and Seth Curry – 3:46 PM

Tommy Beer @TommyBeer
If the Nets lost KD and Kyrie. And then won the lottery next year, only to watch the Rockets draft Victor Wembanyama with their pick….
That sequence of events might be the closest many Knicks fans get to experiencing the joy of a winning a championship in their lifetime LOL – 3:44 PM

Adam Mares @Adam_Mares
Monday edition of the @DNVR_Nuggets podcast is LIVE.
✅ Avs win, Kroenke takeaways
✅ Braun, Watson, and Kamagate meet to the media
✅ Kyrie and KD on the move?
youtube.com/watch?v=rOwJ03… – 3:33 PM

Krishna Narsu @knarsu3
So how exactly do the Lakers plan to sign Kyrie next year to a longer term extension? LeBron is a FA but both he and Kyrie would have to take massive pay cuts to fit them all under cap space. I think in total Kyrie would be sacrificing like $100 mil over 3-4 years? – 3:26 PM

Bill Simmons @BillSimmons
Lakers/Nets phone call transcript
“What about Russ and top-1 protected 2027 and 2029 firsts for Kyrie?”
“No thanks, we don’t want Westbrook. We’re never gonna want Westbrook in any scenario. We’d do AD that’s it.”
(Silence.)
“What about Russ and 2 UNPROTECTED firsts in 2027?” – 3:22 PM

Sam Quinn @SamQuinnCBS
Ran some numbers on how the Lakers could handle the hard cap if they needed to sign-and-trade for Kyrie Irving.
Here’s one projection where Kyrie is traded for nothing but Russ and picks. If the Lakers still want to use their tax MLE, he’d come in at roughly his option number. pic.twitter.com/4ImLXcq1qN – 3:20 PM

Kristian Winfield @Krisplashed
The weather in Brooklyn is appropriate to KD-Kyrie situation. – 3:14 PM

Salman Ali @SalmanAliNBA
It’s wild that we’ve come to the point where the Brooklyn Nets running it back next year with Kyrie and Durant is simultaneously the most likely and most surprising scenario. – 2:48 PM

Fred Katz @FredKatz
One interesting part of the Kyrie-taking-the-MLE hypothetical is his role in the NBPA. He’s part of leadership there, and pretty much any union would advise against a major player voluntarily taking 80-90% less than he could otherwise get. – 2:38 PM

CBS NBA @CBSSportsNBA
Kyrie Irving has been a disaster without LeBron James, but they could still make magic if he gets to Lakers
cbssports.com/nba/news/kyrie… – 2:25 PM

Aaron J. Fentress @AaronJFentress
I wonder if 10 years from now, after Kyrie Irving’s career has concluded, he will regret costing himself a $250 million extension over the COVID-19 vaccine? – 2:21 PM

Marc Stein @TheSteinLine
James Harden, Kyrie Irving, Bradley Beal, P.J. Tucker, John Wall, Kevon Looney (and more) all feature prominently in my latest around-the-league notes column as we dribble closer to Thursday’s opening bell in free agency: marcstein.substack.com/p/my-nba-free-… – 2:18 PM

Kristian Winfield @Krisplashed
Hopping on @ESPNRadio with @ColemanESPN and @BartScott57 to talk Kyrie Irving right now – 2:09 PM

Sam Quinn @SamQuinnCBS
I’ve reached the “whatever it takes” stage of the Lakers pursuit of Kyrie Irving.
I know I’ve been the sky screaming for depth and wings, but they’re just not gonna trade Russ otherwise. So picks, swaps, players (not named Bron or AD). Whatever it takes. I’m in. – 2:02 PM

Brian Lewis @NYPost_Lewis
Kyrie Irving has permission to seek sign-and-trade from #Nets nypost.com/2022/06/27/kyr… via @nypostsports – 1:57 PM

Adam Zagoria @AdamZagoria
Now on @njdotcom
Could Kyrie reunite with LeBron with the Lakers? Irving reportedly has ‘great interest’ in L.A. nj.com/sports/2022/06… – 1:50 PM

Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Kyrie Irving passes off question when asked if he still wants to be a Net nba.nbcsports.com/2022/06/27/kyr… – 1:48 PM

Brandon Rahbar @BrandonRahbar
Kyrie wants to bail on KD after 44 games played together.
Harden bailed on KD after 1 1/2 years.
Draymond slandered KD and said they didn’t need him by year 2.
Westbrook played with KD for 8 seasons and was ride or die.
But Russ was the problem teammate. – 1:43 PM

Ryan McDonough @McDNBA
The Lakers recruitment of Kyrie is fascinating
Other teams have little interest in LAL’s trade packages – involving Westbrook, THT and Nunn – but there’s a clear play here
1) the Lakers show Kyrie they’re working on trades over the next few days
2) those trades don’t end up… – 1:34 PM

Adrian Wojnarowski @wojespn
ESPN story on the Lakers solo pursuit of a sign-and-trade deal for Kyrie Irving — with Irving’s situation continuing to leave the Nets vulnerable for a Kevin Durant trade request: es.pn/3QVCOBU – 1:15 PM

Rob Perez @WorldWideWob
If Kyrie somehow finds his way to the Lakers with Westbrook still on the roster their games should be eligible to win a Primetime Emmy. First time ever. Outstanding Drama series or Outstanding Comedy, doesn’t matter, either will do. – 1:13 PM

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA
Kyrie Irving opting out of $36M to sign for $6M is a ludicrous idea…and it’s something I absolutely think he might do.
I believe Kyrie when he says it’s not about the money for him. Or I, at least, believe him more than just about anyone else playing in the NBA. – 1:07 PM

David Hardisty @clutchfans
We’re getting started now… I’m sure Kyrie and the Nets will be a big discussion point as well. twitter.com/i/spaces/1lPKq… – 1:01 PM

Jake Fischer @JakeLFischer
Sources with knowledge of the situation have increasingly believed Kyrie Irving’s willingness to opt out of Brooklyn, sign the $6M taxpayer midlevel with the Lakers, where Irving can re-sign long-term in 2023.
More on @getcallin with @BigWos at 7:30ET: callin.com/room/free-agen… – 12:58 PM

Tommy Beer @TommyBeer
Kyrie: “Okay, who wants to work on a sign-and-trade!?!?!?!. Let’s get it going!!”
NBA Teams:
pic.twitter.com/QSPHDO0JI1 – 12:41 PM

Adam Mares @Adam_Mares
The Nets listening to the league office explain to them that they’re going to accept a Kyrie for Westbrook trade. pic.twitter.com/qDpi2jQA0a – 12:41 PM

The Ringer @ringernba
The Lakers: “Can we discuss a Kyrie Irving trade?”
The Nets: “Sure. Who are you willing to offer?”
The Lakers: “Russell West-
The Nets: pic.twitter.com/VGhOLV4uof – 12:38 PM

Ky Carlin @Ky_Carlin
What a disaster the Kyrie Irving situation turned out to be in Brooklyn. My goodness gracious. – 12:37 PM

Yaron Weitzman @YaronWeitzman
Knicks fans, if the options are Kyrie on a 4-year max or Brunson on a 4-year max, which do you prefer? – 12:34 PM

Austin Krell @NBAKrell
According to Windhorst (via SC), the Nets would rather lose Kyrie than have a status quo situation. – 12:32 PM

Eurohoops @Eurohoopsnet
Kyrie Irving to discuss sign-and-trade deals looking to leave Brooklyn #NBA
eurohoops.net/en/nba-news/13… – 12:28 PM

Kyle Goon @kylegoon
A quick re-up of my assessment of how the Lakers should look at a potential partnership with Kyrie: ocregister.com/2022/06/24/kyr… – 12:25 PM

Bill Oram @billoram
As I wrote last week *at the old job* you certainly don’t want to be the team whose best option is Kyrie Irving, but that’s where the Lakers find themselves. theathletic.com/3379101/2022/0… – 12:25 PM

Tony East @TEastNBA
You never really hear much about that Kyrie Irving guy any more do you? – 12:25 PM

Adrian Wojnarowski @wojespn
ESPN Sources: Outside of the Lakers, there are currently no known teams planning pursuit of sign-and-trades for Nets G Kyrie Irving. No sign-and-trades can be formally discussed until after 6 PM on Thursday. Brooklyn isn’t believed to have interest in available Lakers packages. – 12:22 PM

Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Report: Nets give Kyrie Irving permission to seek sign-and-trade deals nba.nbcsports.com/2022/06/27/rep… – 12:15 PM

Ryan Blackburn @NBABlackburn
I think about the Cavs offering Kyrie Irving for a Jamal Murray + picks package back in 2017 pretty frequently. – 12:06 PM

StatMuse @statmuse
Kevin Durant playoff win% with super star teammates:
78.6 — Steph Curry
75
70
65
60
57.3 — Russell Westbrook
46.2 — Kyrie Irving pic.twitter.com/6uB1gWHqok – 12:03 PM

Mike Mazzeo @MazzNYC
If this is the end, I’m going to miss Joe Tsai, Sean Marks and Kevin Durant defending, supporting, and kowtowing to Kyrie Irving as he selfishly sabotaged last season. This Core Four truly deserved each other – 11:58 AM

Alex Schiffer @Alex__Schiffer
The Athletic can confirm ⁦@Kristian Winfield⁩’s report that Kyrie Irving has been granted permission to seek a sign-and-trade from the Nets. Re-upping this from a week ago on why that’s easier said than done: theathletic.com/3374378/2022/0… – 11:56 AM

Vincent Goodwill @VinceGoodwill
In light of what ⁦⁦@Kristian Winfield⁩ reported… “If Irving was a player to lift all tides, if he was one whose mere presence inspired teammates to play with him and for him, he wouldn’t just have the Nets as suitors, but anyone without an All-NBA PG” sports.yahoo.com/kyrie-irving-i… – 11:56 AM

Adam Wexler @AdamJWexler
A few things swirling…
– Case has been filed vs #Texans, per Buzbee
– Watson/NFL/NFLPA hearing is Tuesday
– The 1st 4 games of the ALCS preview were insane!!!
– #Rockets – Wall separation soon
– Nets Irving seeking trade
I’m sure #TheATeam will be fired up. I’m on vacation!! – 11:54 AM

Kamenetzky Brothers @KamBrothers
Monday’s @LockedOnLakers podcast! The latest on the “Kyrie to the Lakers” rumors, plus listener questions about which veterans that could/should be retained. Melo? Dwight? *None* of them? #FirstListen @LockedOnNetwork @LockedOnNBAPods
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the… – 11:16 AM

Kristian Winfield @Krisplashed
Sources: Kyrie Irving has requested and received permission from the Nets to find sign-and-trade offers from other teams. Kevin Durant still hasn’t spoken to Nets front office. Russell Westbrook to Brooklyn remains unlikely. More for @NYDNSports
nydailynews.com/sports/basketb… – 11:08 AM

Sirius XM NBA @SiriusXMNBA
This week Kyrie Irving will make a decision on his $36 million player option for the 2022-23 season.
@Brian Scalabrine believes he should opt in and “prove himself”. pic.twitter.com/K4ut3jnXKb – 11:07 AM

Alex Schiffer @Alex__Schiffer
Teamed up with @Sam Amick and @Joe Vardon to sift through the Kyrie Irving/Kevin Durant situation: theathletic.com/3384393/2022/0… – 10:04 AM

Sam Amick @sam_amick
Is Kyrie Irving trying to make his way out of Brooklyn, and is Kevin Durant next? Exploring the Nets situation that might dominate the NBA summer, at @TheAthletic, with @Alex Schiffer and @Joe Vardon
theathletic.com/3384393/2022/0… – 9:47 AM

Joe Vardon @joevardon
Is there anything Kyrie Irving could do to salvage his reputation among NBA fans? It starts with signing with the Lakers, on the cheap. ⁦@Sam Amick⁩, ⁦@Alex Schiffer⁩ and I break it down, ⁦@The Athletic⁩ theathletic.com/3384393/2022/0… – 9:08 AM

Chris Sheridan @sheridanhoops
Amid all of the Kyrie Irving speculation, he is 95-1 to win #NBA Most Valuable Player award in 2022-23. Bradley Beal is 110-1 and Zach LaVine is 160-1. Steph Curry is 18-1 behind seven others. Doncic, Embiid, Giannis are 1-2-3 most likely. LeBron James is 23-1. – 8:40 AM

Sam Quinn @SamQuinnCBS
Two weeks ago I hadn’t even considered Kyrie to the Lakers as a possibility.
A week ago I was intrigued but dismissive, focused on more seemingly plausible offseason scenarios.
Now I’m really starting to believe it’s their only hope of contending next season. – 10:37 PM

Zach Lowe @ZachLowe_NBA
ICYMI: Lowe Post podcast: @Bobby Marks + @Jonathan Givony recap the draft + preview free agency: Nets, Kyrie, fake KD trades, Ayton, DET/ORL drafts, Sixers trade, deals that didn’t happen (but still might), more:
Spotify: spoti.fi/39QSdm9
Apple: apple.co/3A2Mkx4 – 9:56 PM

Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Draymond Green on possibility of Irving, LeBron on Lakers: “They won’t beat us” nba.nbcsports.com/2022/06/26/dra… – 9:00 PM

More on this storyline

 

Shams Charania: Kyrie Irving: “Normal people keep the world going, but those who dare to be different lead us into tomorrow. I’ve made my decision to opt in. See you in the fall. A11even.” -via Twitter @ShamsCharania / June 27, 2022

Nets Daily: Woj on SportsCenter says the Laker offer in a sign-and-trade is centered on Russell Westbrook and the Nets are not interested. -via Twitter @NetsDaily / June 27, 2022

The Heat has far more interest in acquiring Durant than Irving, according to a source close to the situation. Acquiring Irving comes with a risk because his availability has become a major issue. -via Miami Herald / June 27, 2022