Kyrie Irving Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Bulls Notes: Trade Deadline, Caruso, Irving, LaVine, White

February 6th, 2023 at 1:43pm CST by Luke Adams

The 25-27 Bulls find themselves at a crossroads as this Thursday’s trade deadline approaches, but they don’t have any intention of trading away core players, team and league sources tell Jamal Collier of ESPN.

Collier’s report is consistent with what we’ve heard in recent weeks from other Bulls reporters, including K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago and Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Both Johnson and Cowley acknowledged that the team’s stance could change as the trade deadline nears, but with only about 72 hours left for teams to make in-season trades, it sounds like the Bulls haven’t become any more inclined to sell.

Collier does hear from a league source that the Bulls have shown a willingness to listen to inquiries on Alex Caruso, but says Chicago would probably have to be “blown away” by an offer to actually trade the veteran guard, who is the club’s best perimeter defender.

Here’s more on the Bulls:

With Lonzo Ball‘s availability up in the air for the foreseeable future, Kyrie Irving might have made some sense as a Bulls target from an on-court perspective, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. However, Cowley hears that Irving was never on the team’s radar following his trade request. Russell Westbrook isn’t a trade target for Chicago either, Cowley adds.
After earning All-Star nods in 2021 and 2022, Zach LaVine isn’t sweating not being named to the team this year, writes K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. “I didn’t feel like I played at an All-Star level at the beginning of the season. That’s coming back off of injury. I started slow and then started picking it up,” LaVine said. “I am where I’m supposed to be at. I know who I am as a player. I think the league knows that too.”
As Johnson relays, LaVine added that the Bulls haven’t been good enough to warrant sending two players to the All-Star Game (DeMar DeRozan was named a reserve). “I think bigger picture you’re not worried about All-Star, you’re trying to get your team back in the playoff picture,” LaVine said.
At one point this fall, it seemed like Coby White might be the odd man out in Chicago’s backcourt, but he has established himself as a consistent rotation piece over the course of the season, writes Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic. As Mayberry outlines, the case for hanging onto White and attempting to re-sign him as a restricted free agent is more compelling than it once was, so the Bulls could face a tough decision on the fourth-year guard at the trade deadline if they get a viable trade offer for him.

Lakers Notes: Trade Deadline, Westbrook, Irving, Reaves

February 6th, 2023 at 9:05am CST by Arthur Hill

Now that Kyrie Irving is headed to Dallas, the Lakers are left to search for other ways to upgrade their roster, writes Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register.

There don’t appear to be any other All-Star level talents available for what L.A. has to offer, so Goon believes the options now involve role players such as Mike Conley, Jarred Vanderbilt and Malik Beasley from the Jazz, Josh Richardson and Doug McDermott from the Spurs or possibly Gordon Hayward, Terry Rozier and Mason Plumlee from the Hornets.

The Lakers are also in a difficult situation because the player they most want to part with, Russell Westbrook, has a contract that will likely require three or four players in return to match salaries, Goon adds. Utah, Charlotte and San Antonio may not be interested in making such a complex deal when there are simpler options with other teams.

Last month’s acquisition of Rui Hachimura — and the likelihood of a new contract this summer — will cut into L.A.’s projected cap room. A rival executive told Goon that the Lakers want to limit this year’s hit on their repeater tax, which also reduces their options in the trade market.

There’s more on the Lakers:

Although Westbrook has been better this season, teams remain reluctant to take on his $47.1MM contract, Goon adds. The same executive says potential trade partners still want at least one future unprotected first-round pick attached in any Westbrook deal. Goon also speculates that the Lakers’ interest in Irving may have opened old wounds with Westbrook that could affect locker room chemistry if he remains with the team.
The Lakers received permission from the Nets to talk to Irving’s representatives when he was pondering his player option last summer, but they didn’t follow up, sources tell Jovan Buha of The Athletic. Even though L.A. appeared to be the most likely trade partner at the time, Irving’s agent, Shetellia Riley Irving, never heard from any member of the team’s front office. Buha’s sources say the Nets informed the Lakers that they wouldn’t have accepted Westbrook in an Irving deal, so his only path to L.A. was to decline the option and sign for the mid-level exception, which the Lakers didn’t believe he would do. L.A. reportedly tried again in early July and during Summer League, but Brooklyn wasn’t interested in dealing Irving at the time.
Austin Reaves talks about the difficulty of breaking into the NBA as an undrafted free agent during an interview with Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.

Kyrie Irving Trade Notes: Durant, Doncic, LeBron, Grades

February 6th, 2023 at 8:06am CST by Arthur Hill

The Kyrie Irving trade may lead to a flurry of deals before Thursday’s deadline, but John Hollinger of The Athletic expects most teams to hold onto their first-round picks in case three of the NBA’s biggest stars become available this summer.

It’s barely been seven months since Kevin Durant‘s last trade demand, and even if he doesn’t request it, Hollinger believes the Nets may consider moving him in the offseason. Durant will turn 35 in September, and Hollinger points out that he’s the only star left on a Brooklyn team that no longer looks like a contender and may not have the draft assets to pull off a major addition.

Hollinger also expects rival teams to start monitoring Luka Doncic‘s happiness in Dallas, especially if the Irving deal backfires. He cites league executives who speculated over the past week that acquiring Irving could be toxic for the Mavericks on the theory that he could eventually cause Doncic to ask to leave, the same way James Harden did in Brooklyn when he was paired with Irving. Even if Irving turns out to be a short-term addition, Dallas parted with two rotation players plus draft capital in the deal and doesn’t have an obvious path to improve.

The third star worth watching, according to Hollinger, is LeBron James, who tweeted “Maybe It’s Me” on Sunday after seeing the Lakers miss another opportunity to add talent. James was reportedly a strong proponent of trading for Irving, his former teammate in Cleveland.

There’s more on the Irving deal:

Even though they gave up the best player in the deal, Kevin O’Connor of the Ringer believes the Nets are in a better position. Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith provide additional depth, giving the team possibly 12 players capable of handling regular rotation minutes. O’Connor adds that Brooklyn could still use a backup center and states that the organization still has interest in the Timberwolves‘ Naz Reid.
The Durant-Irving era, which began when both players signed with the Nets in 2019, will go down as a disappointment, says Adam Zagoria of NJ.com. Even after adding another All-Star by trading for Harden in 2021, Brooklyn managed to win just one playoff series. Zagoria notes that this time will always be a “what if?” for Nets fans.
Bobby Marks of ESPN considers the trade a “win-win” for both teams (video link). He argues that Brooklyn got at least one starter, and maybe two, in return for Irving, while Dallas is taking an understandable chance to upgrade its talent level.
In grading the deal, Zach Harper of The Athletic gives the Mavericks a C-plus because of the risk involved and the Nets a B, as long as the deal doesn’t alienate Durant.

Mavs Don’t Plan To Offer Irving In-Season Extension

February 5th, 2023 at 9:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kyrie Irving demanded a trade when he couldn’t reach an extension agreement with the Nets. Some may assume the Mavericks, who agreed to acquire Irving on Sunday, have given the temperamental star guard some assurances that they’d sign him beyond this season.

That would be a false assumption, according to Marc Stein in his latest Substack post. League sources told Stein that Dallas has not promised Irving a new contract, since the team wants to see how Irving will mesh with franchise player Luka Doncic before making a long-term commitment.

It’s an obvious risk for the Mavericks to take that approach, even though The Athletic reported that Irving now prefers to head into unrestricted free agency with the hope that his new team, which also gains his Bird rights, will sign him to a four-year, $198MM maximum salary deal.

Dallas is counting on Irving’s relationships with coach Jason Kidd and president of basketball operations Nico Harrison, a former Nike executive, to facilitate a fruitful partnership. The Mavericks are also looking to make other moves with the aim of making a serious run at the title this season.

If the Irving gamble doesn’t pan out for Dallas, the club would have to strike gold in free agency to minimize the trade’s impact. The Mavs are giving up two solid rotation players in Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith, an unprotected 2029 first-round pick, a 2027 second-round pick, and a 2029 second-round pick. The Nets threw forward Markieff Morris into the deal.

Stein also offers up some other interesting tidbits:

The Mavericks initially attempted to send the Nets Christian Wood‘s expiring contract or one of their two burdensome long-term contracts — Tim Hardaway Jr. and Dāvis Bertāns. Wood, who is headed to free agency unless he signs an extension, could still be moved before the trade deadline.
A source suggests to Stein that one of the presumed objectives of Nets owner Joe Tsai was to not trade Irving to the Lakers — his preferred destination.
Doncic signed off on the deal, not only because he was intrigued by the prospects of playing with another star but also because he’ll no longer have to shoulder the offensive load.
As Stein previously reported, the Clippers have shown some interest in Wood, along with Timberwolves point guard D’Angelo Russell, who is also on an expiring contract.

Suns Reportedly Offered Chris Paul, Jae Crowder For Kyrie Irving

February 5th, 2023 at 9:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Suns put together a trade offer for Kyrie Irving that included Chris Paul and Jae Crowder, along with draft capital, according to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report (Twitter link).

Brooklyn also received an offer from the Lakers that included the only first-round picks left at their disposal — the ones in 2027 and 2029. Confirming a report that surfaced on Friday, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reports that the Lakers offered the Nets a package of Russell Westbrook and the two first-round picks but the Nets also wanted all of their young players, including Austin Reaves and Max Christie.

Charania also provided more specifics on Phoenix’s offer. The Suns were willing to give up Paul, Crowder and one first-round pick. However, the Nets wanted three first-round picks in order to take that deal. The Suns never added those picks and ultimately lost interest in pursuing a trade.

The Nets ultimately decided to go with the Mavericks‘ offer of Spencer Dinwiddie, forward Dorian Finney-Smith, an unprotected 2029 first-round pick, a 2027 second-round pick, and a 2029 second-round pick with Markieff Morris also going to Dallas.

Despite Paul’s age, Phoenix’s willingness to give up its floor leader for the unpredictable Irving is an eye-opener. The Suns had a successful weekend, picking up victories in Boston and Detroit, and should get Devin Booker back soon from his groin injury.

However, Paul has battled heel and hip injuries that have led to questions about how his body will hold up throughout this season and the remainder of his contract. Paul is making $28.4MM this season and $30.8MM next season, though only $15.8MM is guaranteed. His $30MM salary in 2024/25 is not guaranteed.

Crowder has been sitting out all season, awaiting a trade.

Southwest Notes: Irving, Morant, Adams, Silas

February 5th, 2023 at 8:03pm CST by Dana Gauruder

When will Kyrie Irving make his Mavericks debut, assuming the reported trade with the Nets becomes official? Irving will take his physical in Dallas on Monday and could suit up against the Clippers in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.

The Mavericks in the midst of a five-game road trip.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

Some associates of Ja Morant have been banned from Memphis’ home arena by the league after a postgame incident on Jan. 29, Bob Kravitz and Sam Amick of The Athletic report. Following a game between the Pacers and Grizzlies, acquaintances of Morant confronted members of the Pacers traveling party near the team’s bus at FedExForum. Later, someone in a slow-moving SUV, in which Morant was riding, trained a red laser on them. “Certain individuals involved in the postgame situation and a related matter during the game that night have been subsequently banned from attending games in the arena,” a league spokesman said. Morant tweeted that his brother has been banned from home games for a year.
Speaking of Morant, he didn’t play against Toronto on Sunday due to right wrist soreness, the team’s PR department tweets. It’s the ninth game this season the point guard has missed. Grizzlies center Steven Adams sat out due to a right knee PCL sprain.
Rockets coach Stephen Silas doesn’t care when he uses his challenge as long as it results in a positive outcome for his team, as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle details. Assistant Will Dunn quickly uses replays and helps Silas decide when and if to challenge a call. “Points are points whether they are in the second or the fourth quarter,” Silas said. “Early in the game, if we’re pretty certain we’ll get points, we’ll use it and take the points. At any time of the game, three points mean a lot. I rely on Will a lot. … He does so much study on it. Sometimes, I’ll think I might challenge, and he’ll say, ‘Nah, nah, nah.’ Sometimes, I’ll make the call on my own.”

Mavericks Exploring More Deals To Upgrade Roster

February 5th, 2023 at 6:36pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Mavericks have reached an agreement to trade for disgruntled Nets star Kyrie Irving but they’re not through wheeling and dealing, Callie Caplan of the Dallas Morning News reports.

According to a source familiar with the front office’s thinking, the Mavericks are exploring more trade possibilities to upgrade the roster around superstar Luka Doncic.

Dallas wants to shed Tim Hardaway Jr.‘s contract, feeling that his inconsistent contributions are not worth the long-term investment, Caplan writes. Hardaway is in the second year of a four-year, $75MM deal, though the contract is front-loaded.

The Mavericks would also like to move the contracts of Davis Bertans’and JaVale McGee, both of whom are signed through the 2024/25 season. They have some expiring contracts (Christian Wood, Dwight Powell), though Wood is also the team’s second-leading scorer.

They also have some young talent in third-year swingman Josh Green and rookie Jaden Hardy.

Pacific Notes: Hachimura, Irving, Durant, Fox

February 5th, 2023 at 3:59pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Lakers combo forward Rui Hachimura is comfortably slotting in to his new role with the club, writes Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register. The athletic 6’8″ forward has become a solid fast-breaking force for Los Angeles so far.

His length, size and speed are massive attributes for a team desperately bereft of those components.

“[Russell Westbrook and LeBron James] get all the defensive attention so I have a lot of easy looks, in either transition of the half court,” Hachimura said. “So, yeah, I love playing with those guys.”

There’s more out of the Pacific Division:

Prior to his eventual move to the Mavericks, the Lakers had conversations with the Nets about a framework for a Kyrie Irving trade, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). Woj reveals that Brooklyn prioritized the Dallas trade offer because it gave them better role-player depth than Los Angeles could offer, in addition to similar future draft equity.
Now that Irving is off the Brooklyn roster, the Suns are hoping to make a legitimate trade offer for the Nets’ lone remaining All-Star, power forward Kevin Durant, sources inform Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report (Twitter link). There’s no indication that Brooklyn is willing to listen on Durant at this point — if that changes, plenty of other suitors figure to join the Suns.
With Warriors All-Star guard Stephen Curry likely to be sidelined for multiple weeks due to a leg injury, commissioner Adam Silver may have to select an injury replacement for the All-Star Game. Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee tweets that Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox deserves to receive serious consideration for that spot.

Latest On Kyrie Irving

February 5th, 2023 at 10:03am CST by Luke Adams

Although Kyrie Irving ostensibly missed Saturday’s Nets game – a dramatic comeback win over Washington – due to right calf soreness, it’s safe to assume his Friday trade request was the reason he wasn’t on the court in Brooklyn.

The Nets are scheduled to play three more home games before Thursday’s trade deadline – Monday vs. the Clippers, Tuesday vs. the Suns, and Thursday vs. the Bulls – but we shouldn’t expect Irving to be available for any of those ones either. According to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report (Twitter link), Brooklyn plans to keep Irving sidelined until a trade is finalized.

And what if the trade deadline comes and goes without the Nets finding a suitable deal for Irving? According to Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter link), the 30-year-old hasn’t made a decision yet on whether he’d sit out the rest of the season in that scenario, but Lewis says it’s a “nuclear option” that has been discussed.

Here’s more on Irving:

Although the Lakers are widely considered a frontrunner to land Irving, having been linked to him since last summer, sources with knowledge of the situation who spoke to Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times expressed pessimism about the odds of Kyrie being dealt to the Lakers.
As Woike explains, Irving’s expectations for his next contract are a factor working against a trade to the Lakers — the All-Star guard is expected to seek a four-year, maximum-salary deal, while the Lakers would prefer no more than a two-year commitment. A similar disconnect between Irving and the Nets is reportedly what led to his trade request in the first place.
Asked about the possibility of the Lakers acquiring Irving, LeBron James said it was a question for Rob Pelinka and the front office, but made it clear he wouldn’t be against a reunion with his former Cavs teammate. “Obviously, that’s a — what’s the word you use — ‘duh’ question when you talk about a player like that,” James said, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
Russell Westbrook would have to be part of an outgoing package in any Irving deal involving the Lakers, but he said on Saturday that he’s not feeling any added pressure hearing his name in trade rumors once again, according to McMenamin. “That’s not up to me. Like I said, I’ve known this was a business since I was 18, 19 years old, since I got into it,” Westbrook said. “My dad taught me that at that age, getting to this league is a business, and people make whatever decision they make. And I’ll make sure I’m ready and professional, like I always have been and always will be.”
Law Murray of The Athletic explores the Clippers‘ reported interest in Irving, noting that L.A.’s up-and-down season has made the team more open to pursuing Kyrie than it would have been last summer. Murray hears that the Clippers have made a “strong offer” for Irving.
While there’s no indication that Kevin Durant will follow Irving’s lead and request a trade before this Thursday, rival executives are hopeful that the Kyrie drama will help expedite Durant’s own exit from Brooklyn, perhaps as soon as this offseason, writes Sean Deveney of Heavy.com. “I know (Nets owner) Joe Tsai came into this year looking at it like, ‘Let’s see how this plays out,'” an Eastern Conference GM said to Deveney. “Well, he’s seen how it has played out. … No matter what happens with Kyrie in the next few days, you have to think that Joe Tsai is going to say it is time to tear it all down and start over. And that means KD is next up.”

Clippers Part Of Kyrie Irving Trade Talks

February 4th, 2023 at 7:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Clippers are among the teams that are active in trade negotiations for Nets guard Kyrie Irving, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

When Irving’s trade request was made public Friday, Wojnarowski listed the Lakers, Mavericks and Suns as the teams with the greatest interest in acquiring him. Sources tell Woj that the Clippers, who are in need of point guard help, should be added to that list.

Wojnarowski hears that Brooklyn is talking to a number of teams about Irving and appears determined to work out a deal before Thursday’s trade deadline. He adds that the Nets expect Kevin Durant to return soon from his MCL sprain and are focused on getting a return that will keep them in title contention.

Sources tell Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter link) that the Clippers made a “strong offer” to Brooklyn and that Tyronn Lue is interested in coaching Irving again after they spent time together in Cleveland.

Irving decided to seek a trade after being unhappy with an extension offer that Brooklyn presented to him last week. Wojnarowski’s sources say Irving wants a deal close to the maximum $198.5MM over four years that he’s eligible to receive. If he’s traded, he can sign a two-year extension with his new team worth up to $78.6MM through the end of June.

Wojnarowski cites a “strong mutual interest” between Irving and the Lakers that dates back to last summer when he was considering whether to pick up his option for the current season. Woj’s sources describe the Lakers as a “motivated suitor” for Irving and say LeBron James is “an immense proponent” of dealing for his former Cavaliers teammate.

Irving missed tonight’s game with right calf soreness, and there’s a chance he might not play for the Nets again if they’re serious about trading him away.