Kyrie Irving is once again making all the headlines—and not precisely because of his work on the court. Shams Charania reported on Tuesday the eight-time All-Star told the Brooklyn Nets he wants out.
Irving's trade request comes just six days away from the NBA trade deadline on February 9, also with just a few months left in his contract. The 2011 first-overall pick has reportedly given the team an ultimatum: either he gets trade before the deadline or he leaves as a free agent in July.
Though Kyrie has often been involved in problematic situations, many may wonder how did they reach this point of no return. In an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show, Shams explained how the contract talks between Irving and the Nets reached an impasse.
Why Kyrie Irving hasn't signed a contract extension with the Nets
"What's happened in the last week or so, I'm told they had contract extension negotiations," Charania said. "The contract extension offered to Irving had some stipulations in it. I'm told his side was vehemently against any stipulations in an extension.
"He believes that he deserves a fully guaranteed contract, a player of his caliber didn't deserve or shouldn't have stipulations in that deal. There's clearly a principles difference between Irving and the Nets. Whatever those principles are, they just clearly do not align."
As Shams noted, many things have happened between Irving and the Nets in the last few years. After the months-long anti-vaxx saga that kept him on the sidelines for an extended period, Irving flirted with walking away until he opted into his player option. Later, a controversial movie he got linked with got him suspended, but came back in great fashion when rejoining the team. Now, Irving is pushing to leave the team. Where he goes next remains to be seen, but it looks like there's no turning back.
