It appears Kyrie Irving is officially moving on...again.
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports the former Cavaliers an impending free agent point guard is scheduled to meet with Brooklyn Nets representatives Sunday in New York. The two sides are reportedly "motivated to move quickly toward reaching a 4-year, $141 million [max] deal."
Should the contract be agreed upon once free agency begins, it would mark the All-Star's third team in four years, and bring his at times tumultuous tenure with the Boston Celtics to an end after only two seasons.
After six seasons in Cleveland that saw him make multiple All-Star Games and hit the shot that won the 2016 NBA Championship, Irving demanded a trade during the 2017 offseason due to conflicts with fellow superstar and team leader LeBron James. Although James reportedly asked the front office not to make a deal, the team felt the situation was untenable, and dealt Irving to Boston for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and a first round draft pick that would later become Collin Sexton. After Thomas and Crowder were both later traded due to poor play and locker room drama, the deal was largely seen as a flop from the Cavs' perspective.
With the Celtics, Irving played well when healthy, averaging more than 24 points per game while making the All-Star team each year. However, he was injury-prone at times and even missed the entire 2018 postseason with a knee injury. His public statements also became more and more bizarre, including going back on an original commitment to stay in Beantown along with repeated jabs at his former team in Cleveland.
This year's Celtics team had high expectations after going to the Eastern Conference Finals without Irving in 2018. Instead, the team struggled with consistency, and ended up being bounced in the second round of the playoffs by the Milwaukee Bucks. After the season ended, Irving reportedly "ghosted" the team by refusing to return any of their phone calls, all but assuring he would sign elsewhere.
Multiple teams had been linked to Irving's services, including a possible reunion with LeBron James on the Los Angeles Lakers. But the Nets were always considered a front-runner, as Irving was raised in the New York area.
Once Irving signs, Wojnarowski reports Brooklyn is also expected to renounce the rights to fellow All-Star D'Angelo Russell and allow him to become an unrestricted free agent. The 23-year-old Ohio State product emerged as a star this year with 21.1 points and 7.0 rebounds per game, and has been linked to his old team in the Los Angeles Lakers.
