NBA

Kyrie Irving reportedly requests trade from Nets prior to NBA deadline

Irving is in the final year of his contract with Brooklyn.

Kyrie Irving during a Nets loss to the Celtics at TD Garden on Feb. 1. Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

February 3, 2023

Kyrie Irving has requested a trade away from the Nets prior to the upcoming NBA trade deadline, according to multiple reports.

Breaking: Brooklyn Nets All-Star Kyrie Irving has requested a trade, league sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. The franchise has been informed that Irving prefers to move on ahead of the Feb. 9 trade deadline – or will leave in free agency in July.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 3, 2023

Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving has told the franchise that he wants to be traded ahead of Thursday's deadline, source tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 3, 2023

Irving, 30, wants to move on from Brooklyn prior to the Feb. 9 trade deadline, otherwise he will “leave in free agency in July,” according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.

As recently as January, Irving was still reportedly seeking a long-term extension with Brooklyn. His agent and stepmother, Shetellia Riley Irving, told Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes that the two sides “had no significant conversations to date” about an extension.

Whether or not Irving is able to be traded remains to be seen. He is in the final year of a four-year deal worth more than $136 million he signed with the Nets following his departure from the Celtics as a free agent in July, 2019.

Given the size of his salary, a trade may prove difficult to balance in the context of the NBA salary cap.

Irving is averaging 27.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game, and is set to be a starter in the 2023 NBA All-Star Game. The Nets are currently 31-20, 5.5 games behind the Celtics in the Eastern Conference.

Since being swept by the Celtics in the first round of the playoffs in 2022, the Nets have now experienced multiple trade requests from the team’s superstar combination. Kevin Durant, who signed in Brooklyn with Irving in 2019, requested a trade prior to the start of the new season. Several weeks later, however, Durant and the Nets “agreed to move forward with our partnership.”

Earlier in the season, Irving was suspended for eight games after he posted a link to a documentary that contained antisemitic material. He returned after eventually issuing multiple apologies.