The Brooklyn Nets are in no rush.
Kevin Durant will get his wish, and the Nets will trade him — and Kyrie Irving will follow him out the door — but they want an All-Star caliber player and a mountain of picks in return, and they can be patient in making a deal.
No trade is close right now, according to a couple of reports. First, there is Brian Lewis of the New York Post.
League personnel who spoke to The Post said Nets general manager Sean Marks — and by default team owner Joe Tsai as well — are adamant about getting back All-Star caliber talent in return for Durant. And with their disgruntled star having four years left on his contract, the Nets are in no rush to deal… So far, league sources have said nothing is imminent, or even at the advanced stage.
Then there was what Adrain Wojnarowski of ESPN said on SportsCenter Sunday.
“So far right now, there’s no traction really on deals with either Irving or Kevin Durant.”
With Irving, league sources told NBC Sports that the Lakers are the only serious suitor and laughed at the report the 76ers would get involved in Irving discussions. In his latest newsletter, Marc Stein said, “LeBron James is rooting hard for Irving’s addition to the roster.”
However, working out a trade that sends Russell Westbrook and his $47 million to Brooklyn — or a third team — and could involve other players from the Nets, such as Joe Harris, is complex and will take time.
As for Durant, the Nets asking price is steep — a young All-Star (or potential All-Star), other quality players, plus multiple unprotected future draft picks. This is Kevin Durant and the Nets expect a historic haul in return.
There have been reports about a Warriors reunion, and the Warriors star players are at least intrigued by the idea, reports Marcus Thompson II at The Athletic.
The Warriors superstars have been in conversations with Durant. In addition to catching up, the Hall of Fame-bound peers did entertain the idea of a reunion. It was mostly about the stunning nature of it even being possible… This isn’t a case where the Warriors stars are pressing the front office to go acquire Durant.
Two big hurdles stand in the way of a Warriors reunion with Durant, and maybe three. First, Andrew Wiggins is mentioned as part of the trade, but the Nets can’t trade for Wiggins without first trading Ben Simmons because the CBA prevents a team from having two players on “designated rookie contracts” — players on max extensions of their rookie deals — that they traded for at the same time. Without Wiggins, the deal falls apart (unless the Warriors want to throw in Klay Thompson, which they don’t). Trading Ben Simmons would be exceedingly difficult.
The other hurdle: Would Durant want that? While he speaks positively of his Warriors experience now, is that a road he wants to travel again? Only Durant knows, but it feels unlikely.
Right now, nothing is close on a Durant trade, and it may be a while before it is.
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Nets being patient, nothing reportedly close on Durant, Irving trade front originally appeared on NBCSports.com