New York is once again in the middle of the NBA offseason drama. Kyrie Irving’s future with the Brooklyn Nets remains unclear as he is yet to come to terms on a new contract. Meanwhile, the Knicks continued to make more questionable decisions during the recently concluded NBA Draft and look set to make a big free-agent move.
Read on below as SBOTOP shares the latest news and updates on the recently concluded NBA Draft and other potential offseason deals.
Kyrie Irving’s Nets future unclear
Kyrie Irving’s future with the Brooklyn Nets remains in doubt. Irving must decide this coming Wednesday whether to opt into the final year of his four-year contract which will pay him over $36 million next season.
Irving would become an unrestricted free agent if he opts out, and the Nets are reportedly hesitant to offer him a long-term contract amid his ongoing off-the-court issues. Irving infamously missed a good portion of last season as he refused to get vaccinated, which he needed to be to play in Brooklyn’s home games.
If the Nets remain unwilling to sign Irving to a long-term deal, they could look to move Irving in a sign-and-trade this offseason. Irving reportedly has a list of teams that includes the Los Angeles Lakers, LA Clippers, New York Knicks, Dallas Mavericks and Philadelphia 76ers.
However, Irving has the leverage of being friends with Nets superstar Kevin Durant, with whom he signed for Brooklyn in 2019. Irving’s departure could result in Durant also wanting out, so the Nets will have a difficult decision to make with Irving.
Knicks make moves to set up another big swing
The New York Knicks stole that show in what was a relatively uneventful 2022 NBA Draft. The Knicks made three separate trades on draft night which will likely pave the way for bigger offseason plans.
The Knicks away the No. 11 pick, which turned into Ousmane Dieng, to the Oklahoma City Thunder for three future first-round picks. They then traded a slew of picks to the Charlotte Hornets for the No. 13 pick, which became big man Jalen Duren. And then they flipped Duren to the Detroit Pistons along with veteran point guard Kemba Walker for another future first-rounder.
After all their wheeling and dealing, the Knicks were left with three future first-rounders and opened up $18 million in cap space.
The Knicks will reportedly use that additional cap space to try and sign point guard Jalen Brunson. The Knicks already employ both Brunson’s former agent and father, and they are apparently prepared to offer a four-year, $100 million deal to further persuade the Dallas Mavericks star to join.
Brunson, 25, had a breakout season with the Mavs as he averaged a career-high 16.3 points and 4.8 assists in 79 games. He also averaged 21.6 points in the playoffs as the Mavs defied the NBA 2022 odds to reach the Western Conference finals.
Detroit might be out of Deandre Ayton derby
The Pistons were regarded as one of the top winners of the NBA Draft as they drafted guard Jaden Ivey with the No. 5 pick and acquired promising young big man Jalen Duren in their deal with the Knicks.
And now, The Athletic’s James L. Edwards III reports that Duren’s arrival has affected Detroit’s plan to pursue Phoenix Suns big man Deandre Ayton during this offseason.
“For the last 48 hours, it appeared that landing Ayton would be Plan A for Detroit. Acquiring the additional $20 million in cap space created an opportunity for the Pistons to put the fear into any team with a blue-chip restricted free agent. In all actuality, though, the events on Thursday signal the Ayton route being Plan B. Plan A manifested in Brooklyn, when Ivey unexpectedly slid to the Pistons and they found a way to get back into the lottery to add Duren. Per sources, this was the best-case scenario.”
With Detroit’s potential departure from the Ayton chase, there are now just a few realistic contenders left for the Suns big man, whose future in Phoenix has been the topic of speculation for the last few months.
Paolo Banchero ready for pressure of being top pick
The big NBA 2022 news on draft night was the Orlando Magic drafting Paolo Banchero with the No 1 overall pick.
There had been widespread speculation that Auburn’s Jabari Smith was the favourite to be the top pick, but the Magic made the decision to draft the Duke prospect.
There will inevitably be high expectations on Banchero in being the No 1 pick, but the 19-year-old points out that it will be no different to the pressure and expectations he has had to deal with on his journey to the NBA.
“There’s going to be high expectations for myself that I’m going to hold myself to and that everyone is going to hold myself to,” Banchero said. “But I feel like it’s nothing I’m not used to. It was the same thing for me heading into college, throughout high school, a lot of expectations. It’s been like that my whole life.”
Banchero will be tasked with turning around the fortunes of a Magic team that has had just one winning season in the last decade.
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