Now that the Nets have acquired James Harden, Brooklyn rumors will shift from that trade to the status of NBA champion Kyrie Irving. As you likely already know, Irving has been absent from the Nets for the past several games due to “personal reasons.”
The exact nature of Irving’s absence is not yet known. What we do know is that it continues a drama-filled brief marriage between the enigmatic point guard and his organization.
Now that Brooklyn has added that second star to team up with Kevin Durant, some reports indicate that the team has gained leverage as it relates to the Irving situation.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported:
“I think Kyrie is going to have to explain what’s transpired here in the last week. Ultimately, teams have to be able to count on you. If there’s issues, if there are things they need to help Kyrie Irving work through, like any organization with a great player, they are going to be there to do that.”
That’s the biggest backdrop to the Harden trade. Brooklyn can easily contend for a conference title with Durant and Harden leading the way. Irving is an added benefit, but he's someone the Nets clearly can’t rely on moving forward. That was the case during his first season with the Nets. And now, there are more layers added to the situation.
General manager Sean Marks told reporters, via The Athletic:
“I’m not going to shy away from it: Without a doubt the organization is disappointed with not having any one of our players, in this particular case, Kyrie, not amongst us — not in the trenches with us and so forth."
That statement is unlikely to sit well for a player who made news earlier this season by refusing to meet with the media. By Marks making it public that he is disappointed in the star guard, a further rift could be created. With that said, it’s hard to blame the respected executive.
All of this comes with an inexperienced head coach in Steve Nash attempting to lead the ship in Brooklyn. Irving was apparently upset that he wasn’t consulted in the hiring of Nash, who had a built-in relationship with Durant stemming from their days together with the Golden State Warriors.
Other reports suggest that the relationship between Irving and Durant has cooled off a bit in recent weeks. Talk about major drama.
At this point, everything seems to be on the table. Brooklyn could gauge interest in Irving’s services on the trade block. However, there’s highly unlikely to be much interest in him.
The hope for a suddenly contending Nets team is that this drama passes. Irving returns. A Big Three is formed. And a deep run in the playoffs is the end result. Whether that’s a pie-in-the-sky hope remains to be seen.
We’re certainly going to be hearing a whole lot more about this in the coming days and weeks should Irving’s absence continue. It’s an interesting backdrop with Harden likely set to make his Brooklyn debut here soon.
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