It wasn’t pretty, but the Brooklyn Nets finally got rid of Kyrie Irving.
They made it clear that they didn’t want anything to do with him — and rightfully so, all things considered — when they didn’t offer him a contract extension last season.
They were willing to let him walk away as a free agent in the off-season and only offered him a contract extension this year if the team won an NBA championship, which made the often-unavailable troublemaker feel disrespected.
Team owner Joe Tsai didn’t want to send him to his preferred destination, so he traded him to the Dallas Mavericks, even though their trade offer was far from the best.
So, the rest of the league is now wondering whether they’ll continue to make moves and trade All-Stars Ben Simmons and Kevin Durant.
Notably, NBA insider Nick Friedell reported that Simmons has zero trade value right now, which is unsurprising considering his proneness to get hurt, non-existent offensive game, and well-documented character issues.
As for Durant, Friedell adds that he would fetch a greater trade value in the offseason than just a couple of days before the NBA trade deadline.
A couple of Nets notes from @BobbyMarks42 on @KeyJayandMax:
1. Ben Simmons has no value around the league right now in any potential deal.
2. If the Nets decide to move KD — their return would be greater this summer than it would be before Thursday’s trade deadline.
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) February 6, 2023
Reports state that Durant was completely blindsided by Kyrie’s trade request, and he did ask to be traded in the off-season, so he might not want to stay in Brooklyn anymore after this.
However, as great and impactful as he is, he’s not getting any younger and has struggled to stay on the court over the past couple of seasons, so his trade value might not be as high as it once was.
NEXT: Nets Coach Shares His Message To Team After Kyrie Irving Trade
