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Showing posts with label Kyrie Irving. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kyrie Irving. Show all posts

Kevin Durant ranked No. 8 in ESPN's top 10 NBA players list

 Kevin Durant is undoubtedly an all-time NBA great. So how could arguably the league's best player be ranked outside the top five players in the league?

That's the question that many were asking themselves when ESPN ranked the top 10 players in the NBA. 



 

Citing the two months he missed last season and the trade request he ultimately rescinded this off season as the main culprits for Durant plummeting down the list, even the most unreasonable Durant haters can't defend this ranking.

Yes, he's turning 34 and there has absolutely been turmoil in Brooklyn this summer, but his peak talents are undeniable.

With Ben Simmons now in the fold to distribute and create easy scoring opportunities both in the half court and transition for Durant, his scoring prowess will be on full display.

You can be sure that Durant will be keeping receipts on those who have doubted him and knocked him off the top 5 list.

Preseason play is two weeks away, but until the regular season gets underway, Durant win just need to let this criticism fuel him for the upcoming campaign.

Nets likely facing 'Last Dance' scenario with Kyrie, KD


The writing is on the wall that both Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving might be playing elsewhere following the upcoming NBA season. Both players have flirted with the notion of calling other NBA cities home, while causing angst within the Nets' fan base along the way. Between Irving's long-term contract standoff, Durant's direct trade request to owner Joe Tsai and all of the noise and hoopla that come along with the two superstars, the act is growing tired.

 Management is fed up with the duo's antics and the two basketball savants don't want to relinquish any previously held control over the composition of the roster and staff. Brooklyn doesn't have a single divisional banner, 50-win season, conference title or NBA title to boast in the three years since both landed in the borough in 2019. 

 More wars have been won on Twitter than on the basketball court and what was supposed to amount to a dynamic team where both players cemented their legacy, has turned into a sideshow and utter disappointment for fans. 

 Starved for a title since the team's inception in 1967, the last two years should have seen the team knocking down that door with one of the most talented rosters ever assembled. Instead, a combination of injuries, non-compliance issues, infighting and all around drama has derailed the Brooklyn Express. 

 On the dawn of a new season, the Nets are still tinkering with this failed experiment to see if it can still yield the results many anticipated when the era first started. 

 While the Nets collective brain trust tries to assemble for possibly one last hooray, this is a stark reminder that this team is not the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls led by Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. 

 This Brooklyn Nets team may go down in history for all the wrong reasons and it may be time for the organization to cut its losses if another June goes by without the bright lights blaring over center court on at Barclays Center

Fate of Nets' franchise staying in Brooklyn, rests in hands of Irving, KD

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The Nets will be celebrating 10 years since moving from New Jersey to Brooklyn this upcoming season, yet if the franchise's nomadic history tells us anything, it's that a permanent stay in the borough isn't necessarily all but guaranteed. With owner Joe Tsai accruing losses topping $100 million the last two seasons, the current business model has proven unsustainable. The Nets first failed Big 3 experiment came under a hasty owner in Mikhail Prokhorov mortgaging the future to obtain aging superstars. Flash forward to 2019 and two prime superstars dropped into Tsai and Sean Marks' laps during free agency and a third star required a haul of picks to assemble another doomed super team. With the possibility that both Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving could be gone at the end of the upcoming season, how can Barclays Center remain a big draw? The venue already lost heaps of money on overpriced and underachieving players who could not stay healthy or eligible to play. Since their founding in 1967, the Nets have called eight different arenas home and if this era basketball goes up in flames, who's to say another move isn't in the offing? The franchise was already struggling to build a loyal season ticket base and with non-committal players as the faces of the franchise, fans aren't exactly lining up at the ticket office to part with their hard earned money. Anything short of an NBA Finals run in this the fourth year with Irving and Durant on the roster together, (Durant missed the 2019 season rehabbing from Achilles surgery), will put Tsai even further into the red and open up the possibility of yet another franchise move. Whether that means a return to Long Island at the brand new UBS Arena, a return to New Jersey at either the Prudential Center or Izod Center, is anyone's guess. Only this much is clear, through poor marketing efforts and even more underwhelming play in Brooklyn, Irving and Durant have the weight on the franchise resting squarely on their shoulders.

Nets History book author interview: Rick Laughland on WFAN New York

 Author Rick Laughland joined host Danielle McCartan on WFAN New York's overnight program to discuss the launch of his new book: A History of the Nets-From Teaneck to Brooklyn.

Nets History book author Rick Laughland on WFAN

Laughland talked about his inspiration for writing the book, the nomadic wanderings of the franchise and the improbable journey that brought the franchise to Brooklyn.


Laughland lists his top players on the Nets Mount Rushmore and whether there's a chance the Nets could find another home outside of Brooklyn at some point in the future.

It's put up or shut-up time for Irving, KD in Brooklyn




 Kyrie Irving will need to show up and show out with the Brooklyn Nets this year if he's hoping to net the long-term contract he feels he deserves. 

Sean Marks and Joe Tsai were reluctant to dole out a mega deal for the talented superstar without assurances that he would be available and willing to play in the vast majority of games this year.

The contract standoff dominated the off-season chatter with Irving unexpectedly opting-in to his deal to stay with the Nets for at least the 2022-23 season.

All signs indicate that Irving is raring and ready to prove he naysayers wrong and let his play do the talking. Unfortunately for the superbly talented shooting guard, injuries, vaccine compliance issues and missing games for personal reasons have tarnished his reputation as one of the league's greats.

At age 30, Irving is approaching the prime years of his career and a crossroads where he'll either need to ball out or bail out with the Nets still setting their sights on an NBA title.

A disgruntled Kevin Durant has officially rescinded his trade request, but things can quickly go South for him and Irving if they don't start the season on a winning track. Durant's incessant tweeting and debating with fans makes for some entertaining drama, but if the Nets are a dysfunctional mess like they were a season ago, even the most staunch Durant and Irving supporters will start to turn on the dynamic duo.

Look for Irving to play inspired ball , but it still remains to be seen whether the commitment he's made to the team this off-season will stand the test of time and be sustained throughout the upcoming season. Durant is content enough now, but holding together a locker room with supersized, yet fragile egos will be a daunting task for Steve Nash and company.


Market for Durant, Irving goes cold, duo likely to run it back with Nets

Order a signed author copy of: A History of the Nets-From Teaneck to Brooklyn! Email rick.laughland@gmail.com to get started today!


With each passing day, it's appearing more and more likely that Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving will at least start the season in a Brooklyn Nets uniform. 

 This comes after Durant sent shockwaves throughout the NBA by requesting a trade away from the Nets on June 29. 

 Over two weeks has passed since that date, NBA Summer League will wrap up this weekend with executives heading back to their respective cities. 

 While Sean Marks has had face time with Masai Ujiri, Rob Pelinka, James Jones and other general managers likely linked to a potential Durant or Irving deal, there's reportedly no momentum toward any trade. 

 As things stand today, Durant and Irving appear likely to run it back with Ben Simmons in the fold for the first time along with off-season additions Royce O'Neal and T.J. Warren. 

Despite the turmoil, there's no reason to think Brooklyn can't compete for a top spot on the conference with an improved supporting cast and full-time Irving. 

 Now, the parties will need to reconcile their differences and unify to chase an NBA championship that has eluded the Nets for their entire existence in the league.

Could Nets do unthinkable and trade Kyrie for Harden?

 




Before you head for the comments and call foul on this idea, I promise there is a shred of logic. There's been a lot of noise regarding the Nets ongoing negotiations with Kyrie Irving on a long-term deal. While many leaks, mainly from Kyrie's camp, are intimating that Irving has a wishlist of teams he'd consider destinations via the sign-and-trade route. 

If Marks let's Irving walk to a team with cap space or Irving takes considerably less money to join a contender, Kevin Durant could be soon out the door behind him by way of a trade request.

Perhaps somewhat surprising is that the Philadelphia 76ers are among the squads Irving would consider if he leaves Brooklyn. Not many teams have the cap space to sign Irving outright, so they'd need to have the Nets' help facilitate a sign and trade scenario to make things work.

In the most ironic twist if fate you could ever envision, what if James Harden, became part of a package back to Brooklyn and Irving to the City of Brotherly love?


We all know how much Daryl Morey loves Harden, but even he sees the player is not what he once was in his prime. However, with Durant as the top scoring options, surrounded by 3-point shooting and Simmons potentially being a playmaker, Harden might be a better fit than most think.

It's clear that the two wouldn't coexist as teammates anymore, but if the financials line up and Kevin Durant has his old running mate back alongside Ben Simmons, who's to say it couldn't work?

Durant was clearly bitter about Harden's abrupt exit from the Nets as he didn't buy I'm to Steve Nash's offensively philosophy that was coordinator by former assistant coach, now with the Lakers, Jordan Ott. 

The Nets hired Igor Kokosov, Jason Kidd's offensive guru in Dallas to head up play calling on the offensive side, an offense that was too isolation heavy and Durant reliant last year.

The most likely scenario is that Brooklyn runs it back with Durant, Irving and a potentially healthy Simmons. It's a dark horse scenario that is getting little attention, but stranger things have happened around these Brooklyn Nets.



KD calls sour grapes on Barkley for questioning legitimacy of his titles

 Kevin Durant and Charles Barkley don't pull any punches when exchanging blows through the media.

This time, Durant counted Sir Charles' haymaker when the NBA Hall of Famer insinuated that the old era of NBA players will only respect him even he's the main guy on a championship team.


 


Strangely, Durant brings up the financial spoils that the modern day NBA player enjoys compared to those who played in the 1990's.


 Barkley is merely talking about titles in his tirade and not necessarily the bloated contracts awarded to the game's superstars.

Durant is not solely to blame for the player empowerment era where super teams are the norm. 

Having been in Golden State with Steph Curry for three finals appearances and two rings, Durant now has added pressure to win a title as the man, on the heels of Curry winning without him.

Richard Jefferson: KD's next title 'most important one', thinks 'he will get it done' with Nets



Richard Jefferson knows a thing or two about playing in NBA Finals. He played in two with the New Jersey Nets and two with the Cleveland Cavaliers, winning the 2016 Larry O'Brien Trophy. 

  The all-time Net great compared LeBron James winning the title in his hometown in 2016, Steph Curry winning his fourth ring and first finals MVP this June, with how Kevin Durant will feel when he climbs that NBA mountaintop in Brooklyn. Brooklyn took a major step back last year with a part-time, unvaccinated Kyrie Irving causing a major distraction, while a disgruntled James Harden demanded a trade out of town.

Durant missed large chunks of the year with a sprained left MCL, while Ben Simmons, the centerpiece of the Harden trade never took the court with the Nets and underwent off-season back surgery.

It's looking like Brooklyn's championship window is shrinking, but in Jefferson's estimation, Durant will still get the job done that he and Irving wanted to accomplish when they teamed up in Brooklyn in the summer of 2019. 

A championship with the Nets would all but cement Durant as not only an all-time great player, but put him rightfully on the Mount Rushmore of NBA legends.

Kyrie vows to work on strengthening his body this summer

 


In a live stream via twitch, Kyrie Irving was his own worst critic for disappearing in the final three games of the playoffs against the Boston Celtics.


 Irving, who of practices Ramadan, fasted from sunrise to sunset. This had very little impact on him in Game 1 of the 2022 NBA playoffs and during the prior year's playoff run in Brooklyn.


 

However, Irving appeared in only 29 regular season games after the team refused to let him be a part-time unvaccinated player, before relenting and allowing him to play in road games played outside of New York and Canada.

The Nets' point guard was mesmerizing in his short sample size during the regular season, but come playoff time against a physical and swarming Celtics' defense, Irving appeared physically worn down as a lack of regular game action and conditioning took its toll on him.

Irving's Twitch stream of his Nets' highlights is the clearest indication yet that he's reaffirming his commitment not only to Brooklyn, but to the game of basketball.

Unfortunately, fans have heard this before from Irving, so his words mean very little without action behind them.

Sean Mark and the Nets have yet to engage in serious contract negotiations to extend Irving and some reports indicate they're unwilling to sign him long-term given his wavering commitment to the club.

This will be an intriguing summer for Irving to show once and for all he's all-in to make a title push.




 

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