Brooklyn Nets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Trade Rumors: Durant, Mitchell, Irving, Westbrook, Conley

July 20th, 2022 at 10:57am CST by Luke Adams

With the 2022 Las Vegas Summer League in the books and training camps not scheduled to open for more than two months, many NBA executives are preparing to take vacations, which may delay resolution for the league’s top trade candidates, including Nets star Kevin Durant.

“From what I understand, the trade talks involving Kevin Durant have slowed to a trickle,” Brian Windhorst said on Wednesday during an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up (video link via Talkin’ NBA). “You can still get some Nets folks on the phone if you want to make an offer, but they are not aggressively, I am told, making outgoing calls.

“The league is about to go on their first significant vacations in two years. People are scattering to Europe and the national parks, and Kevin Durant is still a Net. I don’t think that’s going to change in the short-term future.”

As Windhorst alludes to, the 2020 and 2021 offseasons were compressed due to changes to the NBA calendar caused by COVID-19. This is the first full, normal offseason for the league since 2019.

Not everyone will be on vacation for the next two months, so it’s certainly possible that trade discussions will pick up in August or early September — or even later this month. Still, the break in the NBA calendar figures to slow down momentum toward any major deals. That applies to the Jazz‘s Donovan Mitchell talks as well, Windhorst said.

“The Donovan Mitchell situation is really headed towards a stalemate,” Windhorst said on Get Up (video link via Talkin’ NBA). “The sticker shock is out there for the price that the Jazz are asking, and the Jazz are like, ‘Look, we are in no rush. We’re going to sit back and wait for you to meet it.’ The teams are like, ‘We’re not going to increase our (offers).’ And Donovan Mitchell is not pushing it, so I hope everybody enjoys their summer.”

Here are a few more trade rumors from around the NBA:

Windhorst suggested during Wednesday’s episode of Get Up (video link) that he doesn’t view a Kyrie Irving/Russell Westbrook trade between the Nets and Lakers as especially likely at this point: “It’s been discussed weeks ago and hasn’t advanced.”
Windhorst also said the motivation for Durant’s trade request out of Brooklyn remains somewhat vague, which may be one reason why no real progress has been made toward a resolution. “He spoke to the owner, Joe Tsai, and gave a reason (why he wanted to be traded), but I’m not sure the Nets are 100% on the understanding of it,” Windhorst said. “I think the next step in this – barring a team’s change of heart to meet the Nets’ price, which I don’t see at this point on the calendar – I think we’re going to have to wait to hear from Kevin Durant about how open he is to running it back with the Nets. Here we go, as everybody breaks for summer, sitting and waiting for that to happen.”
Appearing on a Spotify Live session with Marc Stein, Tony Jones of The Athletic confirmed that the Jazz have had trade discussions with teams this offseason about point guard Mike Conley, but admitted that he’s not sure there’s much of a market out there for Conley at this point (hat tip to HoopsHype). Conley has a $22.68MM cap hit in 2022/23, with a partial guarantee ($14.32MM) on his $24.36MM salary for ’23/24.

Kyle Korver Joins Hawks’ Front Office

July 20th, 2022 at 9:08am CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 20: The hiring of Korver is official, the Hawks confirmed today in a press release. He’ll be involved in creating and overseeing a development plan for each Hawks player, the team explained in its announcement.

“We are excited to bring Kyle back to the Hawks,” Hawks GM Landry Fields said in a statement. “He is a tremendous person and someone whose presence will benefit all of our players, both on and off the court, drawing from his unique experiences over his 17-year playing career, as a late-second round pick who later became an All-Star in Atlanta and one of the league’s all-time best shooters.”

JULY 19: The Hawks are hiring Kyle Korver to a front office position, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. Korver will have the title of Director of Player Affairs and Development, per Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link).

Korver served as a Nets player development coach last season after a lengthy playing career that began in 2003 and ended after the 2019/20 season. He played for six organizations, including the Hawks from 2012-17. He made the All-Star team while playing for Atlanta in 2015.

He’ll work under president of basketball operations Travis Schlenk.

The 51st overall pick in the 2003 draft, Korver appeared in a total of 1,232 regular season games – and another 145 postseason contests – for the Sixers, Jazz, Bulls, Hawks, Cavaliers, and Bucks. He averaged 9.7 PPG and 3.0 RPG in 25.3 minutes per game and was one of the top long-distance shooters of his era, knocking down 42.9% of his three-pointers during his career.

Fischer’s Latest: Durant, Warriors, Heat, Barrett, Herro, Suns

July 19th, 2022 at 7:15pm CST by Luke Adams

Although some reports have mentioned the Warriors as a possible suitor for Nets star Kevin Durant, Golden State doesn’t appear to have made “serious overtures” for the two-time Finals MVP, according to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report. While Fischer hints that the two teams have at least talked, he says little traction has been generated.

The Heat, meanwhile, continue to focus on acquiring either Durant or Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell before moving on to other business. Multiple sources with knowledge of the situation tell Fischer that Miami is prioritizing Durant over Mitchell.

Here’s more from Fischer:

Knicks personnel have projected confidence that they’ll be able to acquire Mitchell without including RJ Barrett in their offer, according to Fischer, who hears from sources that the Jazz may not be eager to give Barrett a lucrative long-term extension anyway.
While both Barrett and Tyler Herro are considered candidates for maximum-salary rookie scale extensions, Fischer says NBA executives believe the Heat guard is a better bet than the Knicks forward to sign a new deal this offseason (rather than in 2023 free agency). “They always seem to pay their guys,” one assistant GM said of the Heat.
According to Fischer, league personnel continue to classify Suns forwards Jae Crowder and Dario Saric as potential trade candidates. Both players are on expiring contracts for a Phoenix club whose team salary is now well above the tax line.

Latest On Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving

July 18th, 2022 at 9:22pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Raptors are a logical trade partner for the Nets in a potential Kevin Durant blockbuster due to their assets and attractive trade pieces. However, Toronto is unwilling to part with forward Scottie Barnes after his stellar rookie campaign and Brooklyn has insisted Barnes be part of the package, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said on the “Get Up” morning show (video link).

“Toronto doesn’t want to part with Scottie Barnes. That’s their stance,” he said. “Brooklyn, right now, wouldn’t consider a deal (with the Raptors) without Scottie Barnes.”

Barnes averaged 15.3 PPG, 7.5 RPG and 3.5 APG as a rookie while flashing All-Star potential.

We have more on the Nets’ efforts to trade Durant and Kyrie Irving:

Durant and Irving know that neither will be dealt any time soon and have accepted that reality, according to Adam Zagoria of NJ.com. Quoting a source, Zagoria writes that the duo “know behind the scenes that it’s difficult, that it’s unlikely to happen” due to the Nets’ high asking price for each player. The source added that the duo “plotted” their exit and “realized very quickly” that a quick resolution wasn’t in the cards.
Durant requested a trade before his four-year extension kicked in. That’s one of the reasons why the market for his services has been lukewarm at best, Marc Stein writes in a Substack article. Clubs interested in Durant are worried more about keeping him happy over the next few seasons to avert another trade demand than they are about any decline in his skills. Durant turns 34 next month.
Guard Langston Galloway is one of many free agents still looking for an NBA offer. Galloway told Robin Fambrough of the Baton Rouge Advocate that the Durant-Irving saga has impacted him and other players on the market. “Right now (Durant) and (Irving) are holding things up,” Galloway said. “Once what those guys do is decided, things will fall into place for the rest of us.”

Poll: Where Will Kyrie Irving Start 2022/23 Season?

July 18th, 2022 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

It appeared early in free agency as if some momentum was building toward a trade that sent Kyrie Irving from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, but there has been no indication recently that an agreement between the Lakers and Nets is close.

One report last week said that the vibe coming out of Brooklyn was that the Nets are comfortable entering training camp this fall with Irving and Kevin Durant still on their roster. Another report, citing a source close to Irving, suggested that Kyrie hadn’t asked to be traded since opting in for 2022/23 and has “every intention” of playing in Brooklyn next season.

Appearing on ESPN’s Get Up on Monday, Adrian Wojnarowski didn’t rule out the possibility of Irving being traded to Los Angeles, but the language he used – referring to the talks as “not completely dead” – didn’t inspire a ton of confidence.

Additionally, as NetsDaily relays, Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report said on the most recent episode of his podcast that Irving seems to be increasingly accepting of the fact that he’s “overwhelmingly likely to be back in Brooklyn.”

The Lakers aren’t the only team that can make a trade for Irving, but they’re the only one that has been seriously and repeatedly linked to him this offseason. Teams like the Mavericks, Sixers, and Heat have been floated as potential suitors, but those scenarios have been shot down pretty quickly by local beat reporters. Michael Scotto of HoopsHype described Irving’s trade market last week as “Lakers or bust.”

If Irving doesn’t want to be in Brooklyn – and multiple reports this month have suggested he’s interested in joining the Lakers – his best strategy may be to report to camp without making any waves, rebuild his value after a lost 2021/22 season, and either hope for a trade at the 2023 deadline or simply sign elsewhere when he becomes a free agent next summer.

However, it’s unclear how patient Irving is willing to be. Reporting from several outlets in June indicated that he was seriously exploring other destinations and only opted into his contract with the Nets after it became clear that none of the teams on his wish list were prepared to make him a lucrative, long-term offer in free agency. If the team is able to find a suitable trade for his good friend Durant, Kyrie seems even less likely to happily stick around Brooklyn for another season.

It’s also worth noting that recent reports about the Nets’ willingness to open the season with Durant and Irving on their roster could simply be posturing, with Brooklyn trying to regain leverage in trade discussions. Even if a Kyrie trade isn’t imminent today, we still have over two months until training camps begin — that gives the Nets plenty of time to try to find an offer they like.

With all that in mind, we want to know what you think. Which team will Irving open the 2022/23 season with? Will he remain in Brooklyn or end up elsewhere? And if he’s still a Net this fall, how much longer will that last?

Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section below to share your thoughts!

Lakers Rumors: Irving, Trade Targets, Westbrook

July 18th, 2022 at 2:50pm CST by Luke Adams

It remains to be seen whether or not the Lakers will be able to work out a trade with the Nets for Kyrie Irving, but Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN believes L.A. has at least one more major roster move up its sleeve this offseason, as he stated on Monday during the network’s latest episode of Get Up (video link).

“I think the Lakers will make a deal. Maybe more than one deal,” Wojnarowski said. “It may not be for Kyrie Irving, it may not be for an All-NBA player, an All-Star. But players like Eric Gordon in Houston, Buddy Hield in Indiana, players like Patrick Beverley, who came to the Jazz in a trade from Minnesota, who are role players are winning teams. What is the price for those kind of moves? I think they’re going to continue to be active on all those things.”

As Wojnarowski explains, the Lakers aren’t eager to part with all of their most valuable trade assets for modest short-term upgrades, but they still feel the need to add more talent to the roster to take advantage of LeBron James‘ remaining prime years.

“When LeBron’s putting pressure on the front office, on the organization, teams are asking for a lot to do a deal with the Lakers,” Wojnarowski said. “Rob Pelinka‘s trying to keep from trading the 2027, 2029 unprotected first-round picks that obviously LeBron James doesn’t value greatly because he may not be around. He wants to win now. That’s the balance of being in the front office vs. having to serve the fact that you’ve got LeBron James still playing at an incredibly high level at an age we’ve never seen a player play at that level.”

Here’s more on the Lakers:

A potential trade sending Irving to the Lakers is “not completely dead,” per Wojnarowski, but such a deal still hinges in large part on what the Nets do with Kevin Durant. “The Nets are more focused on trying to find a deal for KD before they would even move Kyrie Irving,” Woj said. “I think there’s a good chance that Kyrie Irving is back in Brooklyn to start the season if Kevin Durant is back in Brooklyn.”
Russell Westbrook‘s public split with his longtime agent doesn’t bode well for the former MVP’s relationship with the Lakers, according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, who says that dynamic between Westbrook and the team is becoming “more untenable with each passing week.” League sources tell Buha that the divorce between Westbrook and agent Thad Foucher caught several people around the Lakers by surprise.
Foucher’s statement, which hinted that Westbrook is seeking another change of scenery, may further hurt the Lakers’ leverage in trade talks, Buha writes. Multiple league sources tell The Athletic that potential trade partners are already asking for at least L.A.’s 2027 or 2029 first-round pick in order to take on Westbrook’s pricey expiring contract.
Marc Stein says in his latest Substack article that the Knicks and Jazz are viewed by some people around the league as possible landing spots for Westbrook if the two teams complete a Donovan Mitchell trade. Stein explains that the Knicks may be more inclined to trade away Julius Randle and his long-term contract for a big expiring deal like Westbrook’s in that scenario, though it strikes me as a long shot that New York and L.A. would be able to find a mutually beneficial swap involving those two players.

Keegan Murray Named Las Vegas Summer League MVP

July 18th, 2022 at 1:16pm CST by Luke Adams

Kings forward Keegan Murray has been named the Most Valuable Player of the 2022 Las Vegas Summer League, according to an announcement from the NBA (Twitter link).

Murray, the fourth overall pick in this year’s draft, averaged 23.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.3 steals in his four Summer League games. He also made 50% of his shots from the field and knocked down 40% of his 8.8 three-point attempts per contest.

It was a terrific start for a rookie who figures to play a major role for a Kings team that badly wants to end its 16-year playoff drought. The first player selected after the consensus top three prospects were off the board, Murray was rated behind No. 5 pick Jaden Ivey on some experts’ draft boards, so the two youngsters will likely be measured against one another for at least the first year or two of their professional careers.

Murray looks like he’ll be an excellent fit on a Kings roster led by De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis, two talented scorers who aren’t elite defenders or reliable outside shooters. The former Iowa standout is capable of stretching the floor and handling a variety of defensive assignments, so he’ll presumably see plenty of action alongside Sacramento’s two stars.

Tari Eason (Rockets), Quentin Grimes (Knicks), Sandro Mamukelashvili (Bucks), and Cam Thomas (Nets) joined Murray on the All-Summer League First Team, according to the league (Twitter links). Thomas and another King, Davion Mitchell, shared the Summer League MVP award in 2021.

This year’s All-Summer League Second Team is made up of Santi Aldama (Grizzlies), Bennedict Mathurin (Pacers), Marko Simonovic (Bulls), Trendon Watford (Trail Blazers), and Lindell Wigginton (Bucks).

Stein’s Latest: Mitchell, Knicks, Sixers, Lakers, Beverley

July 15th, 2022 at 7:46pm CST by Rory Maher

New York’s impending pursuit of Jalen Brunson became obvious once a Knicks contingent led by Julius Randle, William Wesley and Allan Houston was spotted at Game 1 of the first-round series between the Mavericks and Jazz. However, as Marc Stein writes in his lastest article for Substack, it’s clear now that New York had designs on pursuing Donovan Mitchell as well as Brunson.

Recent reports from Tony Jones of The Athletic and Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune indicate that the Jazz are looking for six first-round picks and young players in exchange for Mitchell, but the Knicks balked at that asking price. According to Stein, even if the Knicks have more draft picks to offer at the moment, they should be “careful not to underestimate” the Heat and Nets as potential Mitchell suitors.

Under president Leon Rose, the Knicks have unsuccessfully pursued other star players, which is why it’s so important to the incumbent regime to land a player of Mitchell’s stature, Stein says.

Here’s more from Stein:

Mitchell has multiple ties to the Knicks, Stein adds. Mitchell is “very close” with Knicks assistant Johnnie Bryant, who was an assistant with the Jazz for several seasons and recently had multiple interviews for Utah’s head coaching job. He’s also friends with Brunson due to their shared connection with Eric Paschall, who is Mitchell’s closest friend in the NBA and was college teammates with Brunson at Villanova, per Stein.
Like the Knicks’ pursuit of Brunson, the Sixers are likely to face a tampering investigation due to the signing of P.J. Tucker, according to Stein, who reported four days before free agency opened that several rival teams were convinced that Tucker would land with Philadelphia. Stein and others had linked Tucker to the Sixers even before the draft, a week before free agency opened, and Stein notes that Tucker’s agent informed Shams Charania of The Athletic that he was heading to Philly a minute after free agency opened.
It has been rumored that the Lakers might be interested in Jazz guard Patrick Beverley, but a source tells Stein that L.A. has no plans to deal Talen Horton-Tucker for the veteran. The Lakers have been prioritizing speed and youth in the offseason, so swapping a 21-year-old for a 34-year-old would detract from that, Stein notes. Horton-Tucker had been floated as a possibility because the Lakers don’t have any other mid-size contracts for salary-matching purposes — he’ll make $10.26MM in 2022/23, while Beverley will earn $13MM.

Atlantic Notes: Dragic, Irving, Bogdanovic, Raptors, Sixers

July 15th, 2022 at 3:37pm CST by Rory Maher

Goran Dragic admitted in a recent interview with Zoran Mijatović of Slovenian outlet Vecer that his stint with the Nets last season was a difficult one, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post.

“I already talked to Chicago last year, but then things unfortunately took a different direction,” Dragic said, via Google Translate. “Well, not unfortunately, it just happened as it did and I chose Brooklyn. Last year I decided the way I did.

“I played with some stars, like Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, and I have to admit that it was quite difficult because the focus was not the team, but more the individual performances of the individuals,” Dragic said.

The veteran guard decided not to join the Mavericks because there wasn’t a path to regular playing time, but he’s happy he signed with the Bulls in free agency.

“It was really tough last year, but that’s part of the sport. I’m happy that I came to the club environment that I wanted, in which I know that I will play, where I can get to consistency again, and that’s what I’m most happy about,” Dragic said, per Lewis.

Here’s more from the Atlantic:

In an appearance on Get Up (video link), ESPN’s Nick Friedell said he “would be very surprised if (the Nets) dropped (Kyrie Irving) back in to start training camp.” Friedell, who covers the Nets for ESPN, also said he thinks Durant will start the season with Brooklyn.
ESPN’s Tim MacMahon recently relayed on The Lowe Post podcast that the Raptors might be interested in Jazz forward Bojan Bogdanovic (hat tip to RealGM). “If the Jazz and Raptors do a trade, I think Bogdanovic would be the guy going to Toronto, not Donovan Mitchell,” said MacMahon. “Just saying.” “Spicy,” replied Zach Lowe. “I’ve heard rumblings there,” added MacMahon. “Nothing imminent or anything close to it. I think he’s a guy… the Raptors can certainly use a 6’8″ shooter like Bogdanovic. For the Jazz in a rebuild, they’re obviously trying to move him.” Bogdanovic holds a career three-point percentage of 39.2% and Toronto was 20th in the league in three-point shooting last season at 34.9%, so he could be a decent fit with the Raptors. The 33-year-old is on an expiring contract worth $19.5MM next season, so matching his salary might be a little difficult, assuming Toronto is interested.
Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com covers a number of topics related to the Sixers in his latest mailbag column. He believes free agent acquisition P.J. Tucker projects to be a starter next season, joining incumbent starters James Harden, Tyrese Maxey, Tobias Harris and Joel Embiid.

Suns ‘Not Counting On’ Kevin Durant?

July 15th, 2022 at 8:49am CST by Arthur Hill

The Suns‘ decision to match Indiana’s offer sheet for Deandre Ayton may take them out of the bidding for Kevin Durant, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst suggests on his latest Hoop Collective podcast (hat tip to Real GM).

Ayton can’t be traded until January 15 and will have veto power over any deal for the next year. He was believed to be an important part of any package that Phoenix might offer the Nets for Durant.

“I think they have, and by the way they’re not alone… How do I want to put this? I think the position they’re taking is that they’ve made their offer for Kevin Durant. And their offer is their offer. And it’s not an offer that the Nets are interested in,” Windhorst said. “I’m not even sure the Suns can put together an offer that the Nets would be interested in by themselves. I think this is where the other teams are as well.”

Windhorst added that the Durant trade market is stagnant right now because all the interested teams are unwilling to come anywhere near Brooklyn’s asking price. He adds that the Pacers were trying to take advantage of the situation, gambling that Phoenix would either let Ayton go or agree to a sign-and-trade.

Although the Suns declined to offer Ayton a max extension when he was eligible, they were willing to bring him back under the terms of Indiana’s offer, possibly with an eye toward trading him later on.

“This is them partially saying ‘We’re not counting on Kevin Durant. We have a 64-win team. This is going to take us into the tax,'” Windhorst added.

Windhorst stated that the Suns should now be considered a longer shot to acquire Durant, although he doesn’t eliminate them entirely. He reported that the latest offer from Phoenix doesn’t include Mikal Bridges or the team’s full complement of future first-rounders and pick swaps.

The developments in Phoenix could affect Durant’s desire to join the Suns, ESPN’s Nick Friedell said in an appearance on “Get Up” this morning (video link). He adds that the Nets are hoping Durant might become more willing to start the season in Brooklyn and see how things work out.