Happy Tuesday!
Let's get right to it.
Good morning to everyone but especially to...
THE BROOKLYN NETS
Well well well, how the tables turn.
Just hours after the Nets were reportedly "prepared to lose both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant" this offseason, Irving decided to opt into his $37-million player option and commit to Brooklyn -- and Durant -- for at least next season. It's a shocking change of events, and Brooklyn has gone from a lose-lose situation to championship contender.
When Irving is available and locked in, he is one of the game's premier offensive talents and forms one of the league's scariest 1-2 punches with Durant. The problem is Irving has rarely been, well, available and locked in.
He's played in just 103 of a possible 226 regular-season games in three seasons with Brooklyn due to several injuries and not being vaccinated against COVID-19.In 2021-22, the Nets went 30-23 when Irving was out and just 14-15 when he played.Therefore, it was hard for the Nets to commit to him long-term and hard for them to find a worthwhile return in a trade. He's almost impossible to value properly.At least for now, the Nets can hope for the best this season with Irving and Durant back, Ben Simmons expected to finally play and key role players like Joe Harris and Seth Curry returning. There are still many steps left to fill out the rest of the roster, but the Nets seemingly have cleared the first major hurdle of the offseason.
