The Brooklyn Nets put together one of the best duos in NBA history when they signed Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. At least on paper, they were supposed to be the best offensive juggernaut in the league.
Nonetheless, the team has failed to live up to the expectations, and Kyrie Irving has been MIA more often than he's been on the court.
Needless to say, that means the franchise needs to make a tough call. Irving is eligible to sign a max contract extension, yet they don't know if he's committed enough to be worth that much money:
"The Nets’ championship hopes hinge on an amicable solution with Irving, whose personal decision not to get vaccinated and unpredictable injury history have left the Nets hesitant, and now, according to a source familiar with the Nets’ thought process, outright unwilling to give him a long-term extension," Kristian Winfield of the NY Daily News reported.
So, with the Nets on the fence about signing him, Irving could also decide to walk away as a free agent, all but demolishing their ability to put together a competitive team:
"If Irving leaves outright as a free agent this summer, disgruntled by the Nets’ hardball stance on his availability, Brooklyn doesn’t have the cap space to replace him with a star, which means Durant, entering Year 16, could be playing with a questionable Ben Simmons (back surgery) and a roster full of role players," Winfield added.
Losing Irving could also lead to Durant's departure. Not only is Kyrie his best friend but he's also the main reason why he joined the team in the first place:
"In layman’s terms, if Irving leaves the Nets, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Durant becomes frustrated with the organization’s ability to put championship pieces around him. They failed to do so at the beginning of last season, with none of their top offseason acquisitions — James Johnson, DeAndre Bembry or Jevon Carter — finishing the year in Brooklyn," the report concluded.
Well, that's the big question. In reality, no one knows, maybe not even him. He's openly stated that he wants to stay with the team for the long run, but he's also said that in the past.
Also, if he feels backstabbed by the Nets after not getting a max contract extension, it wouldn't be crazy to think that he'd just walk away.
At the end of the day, Irving is the most unpredictable character in the Association, which is precisely why the Nets aren't fully sold on him.
