Well. Kyrie Irving is doing Kyrie Irving things again.

In a calendar year or so that’s been headlined by vaccine-related availability issues and a weird refusal to shout down antisemitism as a concept after promoting a questionable documentary on his social media platforms, the 30-year-old Irving has formally requested that the Nets move him ahead of the Feb. 9 NBA trade deadline, according to multiple reports.

But this request has nothing to do with those things, but rather his frustration with the progress or lack thereof when it comes to a potential long-term extension in Brooklyn, according to multiple reports.

“The Nets and Irving’s agent, Shetellia Riley-Irving, had discussed an extension recently, but Brooklyn remained reluctant to rush into a long-term commitment without further evidence that Irving could stay reliable, perform at a high level and remain controversy-free, sources said,” according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Or, if you want to read between the lines (and you don’t need to be an expert to do that here), the Nets want to know if Kyrie is truly worth the headache he’s been for them, and aren’t simply falling over themselves to hand Irving another max contract.

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  BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – APRIL 17: Jayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics defends Kyrie Irving #11 of the Brooklyn Nets during Game 1 of the 2022 NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs at TD Garden on April 17, 2022. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

• In almost perfectly Kyrie fashion, Irving’s request comes with the Nets in the midst of a slide that’s seen them drop seven of their last 11 games, all of which have been played without Kevin Durant available.

  Prior to that slide, the Nets were challenging the Celtics for the top spot in the Eastern Conference, and were just a couple games back of Irving’s former team for the top spot in the East.

  Irving himself has been productive this season, too, with a 40-game run that’s come with 27.1 points per game (11th-best in the league) along with 5.3 assists and 5.1 rebounds per night. Irving has also posted three outings of at least 38 points in his last seven games, including a 48-point outing in a Jan. 20 win over Utah.

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  BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – APRIL 17: Kyrie Irving #11 of the Brooklyn Nets and Kevin Durant #7 look on during Game 1 of the 2022 NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs against the Celtics at TD Garden on April 17, 2022. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

• Irving’s desires for yet another change of scenery continues what’s become a kiss of death for any city Irving plays in at that moment, too, as Irving is less than a year removed from saying that he intended to sign an extension in Brooklyn and that there was ‘no way’ he would leave Durant in Brooklyn.

  You know, just like he told fans in Cleveland prior to forcing his way out of Cleveland and out of the shadow of LeBron James, and just like he told an arena full of Celtic fans in 2018.

  I mean, seriously, the dude just can’t help himself.

• “If you guys will have me back, I plan on re-signing here.” - Kyrie Irving #Celtics pic.twitter.com/EkXKrODUg9

  — Binge Sports (@BingeSports) October 4, 2018

• Irving’s request gives the Nets less than a week to find a potential trade partner for the talented-but-enigmatic guard, and without Irving providing a list of trade destination preferences, according to multiple reports.

  It’s worth wondering just what the Nets could fetch in return for Irving, and which team out there is desperate to take a gamble on a player who is averaging a ‘wear-out-his-welcome’ every two-to-three years at this point.

  That’s assuming that the Nets, who are in a ‘win now’ mindset as long as they have Irving and Durant on their roster, are even willing to sell Kyrie for pennies on the dollar instead of simply trying to roll the dice on a perhaps improbable short-term partnership in pursuit of an NBA championship.

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