Kyrie Irving chooses her $ 36.5 million option with the Brooklyn Nets for next season, he told The Athletic on Monday.
“Normal people support the world, but those who dare to be different are leading us into tomorrow,” Irving told The Athletic. “I decided to get involved. I’ll see you in the fall. A11even.”
Irving had compiled a list of teams he would like the Nets to consider working on signing and trading if they could not agree on his terms to stay in Brooklyn, but the Los Angeles Lakers were the only team known to show interest, sources said. Adrian Voinarovski of ESPN.
Without the opportunity to find a deal to sign and trade, Irving plans to exercise his player option, sources confirmed. He has until 17:00 ET on Wednesday to submit documents to join.
Irving no longer qualifies for signing and trading. The Nets may still be working to trade it as an expiring contract, but Irving will not have an official voice in a potential landing site. He has until June 30 next year to work out an extension with the Nets before becoming an unlimited free agent.
The 30-year-old Irving averaged 27.4 points, 5.8 assists and 4.4 rebounds last season, but played in just 29 games of the regular season. Deciding not to be vaccinated against COVID-19, Irving was not allowed to play in New York because of the city’s vaccination mandate for employees.
When he did play, Irving reminded everyone how talented he still was, as evidenced by the periods in March and April, when he scored at least 40 points in four games, including 60 during the March 15 victory over the Orlando Magic.
There were usually big gaps between when he could play in the schedule, until New York Mayor Eric Adams reversed the course in late March and allowed vaccinations for athletes and performers. Irving played in all four games of the Nets’ loss to the Celtics in the first round of the playoffs.
A seven-time All-Star selection and three-time All-NBA, Irving has averaged 27.1 points and 6 assists, while shooting 49% of the field and 40.6% of 3 in the last three seasons. But due to various injuries and other problems off the floor, he has played in only 103 games of the regular season during this period.
ESPN’s Nick Friedel contributed to this report.
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