NBA offseason frenzy: What's next for Kyrie Irving, Rudy Gobert, others
Wed, Jun 29, 2022
NBA News (AP)
AP Sports NBA Writer
The NBA offseason has arrived. Perhaps not officially -'we have to wait until 6 p.m. ET on Thursday for the free-agent signings to be announced, because, well, I'm not exactly sure why - but all sorts of stuff is already happening.
Jalen Brunson is going to be a Knick! John Wall is going to be a Clipper. Kyrie Irving is going to remain a Net!
Well, that last one might not exactly be true. Which leads us back to the end of the NBA's moratorium. Sure, it's cool that free agency deals can finally be announced (isn't it incredible how multimillion dollar contracts are somehow negotiated within 30 seconds???), but what really makes the night fun is how it allows the red tape preventing player movement to be removed. 'Tis the season of trades, signings and off-court staredowns.'
With that in mind, here are five off-court situations that could most impact what happens on the court next May and June.
1. How Will The Brooklyn Nets Handle Kyrie's Wandering (Third) Eye?
Yes, yes, as we all know by now, Kyrie has picked up his player option, meaning - barring any unforeseen circumstances, which, well, you know -'the Nets are slated to pay him $37 million this season in exchange for his services as a basketball player. That, however, doesn't mean that Kyrie still plans on entering the season as a member of the Brooklyn Nets. After all, dare to be different!
The Nets reportedly learned about Kyrie Irving picking up his option the same way as the rest of the public: by his public statement on Twitter. Joy Taylor reacts to Brooklyn's reaction and breaks down why she "cannot keep buying into the Nets."All opting in means is that Kyrie will not be taking a $30 million pay cut to play for another team. But he can still ask for a trade, and if he makes things uncomfortable enough for the Nets, will the organization try to find him another home?
The Los Angeles Lakers are the obvious option, but, because of the salary involved, bringing in Kyrie would mean having to put Russell Westbrook in the trade. That would require finding a third team since there's no way the Nets want to take Westbrook back. This would maybe be feasible if the Lakers had any assets left to attach to Westbrook.
But if there's one thing we know by this point about Kyrie it's that things never go as planned. If the Nets can just make it to the season and get him, Kevin Durant, Ben Simmons, Joe Harris and Seth Curry on the floor together and running circles around the competition, they could be fine. But we still have about three months until we reach that point. When it comes to the whims of Kyrie Irving, three months is a longggggg time.
2. Are the Atlanta Hawks done dealing?
They've already sent nearly all their first-round picks to the Spurs for Dejounte Murray,'a dynamic 25-year-old guard who made the West All-Star team last season. Murray will help cover for Trae Young on defense and give the Hawks some more off-the-bounce juice, especially when Young sits.
But the Hawks still have John Collins on the roster, a player they've been shopping for more than a year. Collins -'a versatile 6-foot-9 forward who can rim-run, create off the dribble and is a 37.6% 3-point shooter - is a player lots of contenders could use. Hawks head honcho Travis Schlenk has already proven that he's one of the NBA's more aggressive GMs. I'm curious to see what this team looks like come next week.
3. Who wants Rudy Gobert?
This could be the team he currently plays for, the Utah Jazz. Or maybe it's the Hawks. Maybe it's the Timberwolves, who appear open to the idea of Karl-Anthony Towns as their center and pairing him with another rim-protecting big.
We don't know. What we do know is that Gobert is a player who will have a major impact on next year's standings. No, he's not perfect, and, sure, he has been picked on in a few playoff matchups. But he's still proven himself to be a player who, through his incredible defense and rim-running prowess, impacts winning.
Yes, I know he's 30 years old and owed a ton of money. But it's not every day that a three-time Defensive Player of the Year comes on the market. Personally, I love a Gobert for John Collins and Clint Capela deal for both the Jazz and Hawks. It would give Atlanta another defensive lynchpin behind Trae Young and the Jazz some more versatility and punch. But I'm sure there are other deals out there that could greatly affect this year's standings.
4. Where Is Deandre Ayton going?
It's not often you see a 23-year-old former No. 1 pick become available, especially one coming off a season in which he averaged 17.2 and 10.2 rebounds per game and started at center for the Western Conference's top seed. Like Gobert, Ayton is far from perfect. What he is, though, is very young, and very good.
Ayton is a restricted free agent, meaning the Suns can match any offer he receives. They also could have extended him last season and elected not to. For reasons unknown, they don't seem particularly interested in having him around long term.
So where can Ayton land? The Pistons once seemed like an intriguing option, but they just used a high draft pick on center Jalen Duren and burned all their cap space taking on the Knicks' unwanted contracts. There aren't many teams with cap space left, so it's likely Ayton's next home will be the result of a sign-and-trade. He's a player every contender and playoff-hopeful should be calling the Suns about.
5.'Are the Wizards really doing this Bradley Beal thing?
Bradley Beal is an excellent basketball player. This he has proven. What he hasn't shown is that he has the ability to carry a team by himself.
Beal is on the verge of becoming a free agent. He and the Wizards appear to be on the verge of coming to terms on a long-term, max extension. Here are the numbers:
My question: Why? If you're the Wizards, what do you gain from this? It's not Beal's fault that they've failed to surround him with adequate talent, but such is their reality. The prudent move for Washington would have been to trade Beal two years ago, when he was still signed and teams like the Pelicans, Knicks, Sixers and Warriors -'just to name a few - could have engaged in a bidding war.
I admire Beal's loyalty. But it also looks like the Wizards are destined to spend the next five seasons competing, at best, for spots in the play-in tournament.
Yaron Weitzman is an NBA writer for AP Sports and the author of Tanking to the Top: The Philadelphia 76ers and the Most Audacious Process in the History of Professional Sports. Follow him on Twitter @YaronWeitzman.'
