Bulpett: Kyrie Irving ‘preparing’ to join Nets
By Matt McCarthy, 985TheSportsHub.com
The Kyrie Irving to the Nets rumors continue to grow louder and louder, and now The Boston Herald is the latest outlet to suggest that Kyrie is headed to Brooklyn once free agency opens.
According to Steve Bulpett, Irving is “prepared” to sign with the Nets next month. Bulpett cited two sources in his story, one who was described as a non-Celtics league source and the other who Bulpett said has ties to the agency expected to take over Kyrie’s representation in the coming days.
“According to a source with ties to Roc Nation, the organization expected to become Irving’s new representative, the All-Star point guard is prepared to sign with the Brooklyn Nets when he becomes a free agent next month. A separate league source told the Herald that his team (not the Celtics) has received the same information and is operating under the belief that Irving wants to join the Nets,” Bulpett wrote.
“Word is that the Celtics, meanwhile, had not been given any definitive indication from Irving as of Thursday afternoon,” Bulpett added.
But Bulpett also said that the Kyrie-to-Brooklyn deal can’t be viewed as set in stone just yet, based on Irving’s history of changing his mind.
“To be fair to the situation, any story involving Irving needs to contain a disclaimer. While the two sources cited in the [story] are to be trusted, most anything involving Irving should be seen as a fluid matter. Nothing can be truly settled until a contract is signed, and that cannot take place until the NBA moratorium ends on July 6 at noon Eastern Time. And, as Celtic followers have come to know, Irving remains eminently capable of changing his mind.”
Bulpett went on to write that Kevin Durant’s Achilles injury “appears to be having no bearing on Irving” when it comes to his decision making over the next few weeks. Many have suggested that Irving and Durant, who can also opt-out of his contract with the Warriors, could potentially team up somewhere via free agency.
“As reported [in the Herald] last month, a Golden State source said that Irving had definitely spoken to Durant about teaming up once they became free agents. Another source in that story said the problem was that Irving wanted Brooklyn, while Durant was leaning hard to the Knicks,” Bulpett said.
“Now, with the latter likely to miss most if not all of the 2019-20 season, New York and other clubs with interest must consider that not only will Durant be facing what is essentially a redshirt year, but that he will be 32 at the start of the 2020-21 campaign,” Bulpett added.
As always, NBA rumors need to be taken with a grain of salt, but this much seems true: with free agency just over two weeks away, it’s fair to say that Kyrie seems to be inching closer to leaving Boston.
You can hear Matt McCarthy on various 98.5 The Sports Hub programs. Follow him on Twitter @MattMcCarthy985.
