Kyrie Irving is prepared to SIT OUT the rest of the season if the Brooklyn Nets refuse to trade him

BREAKING NEWS: Kyrie Irving is prepared to SIT OUT the rest of the season if the Brooklyn Nets refuse to trade him by Thursday’s deadline after failing to agree terms over a new deal

Kyrie Irving could sit out the rest of the season for the Brooklyn Nets if they don’t trade him before Thursday’s deadline.

That’s according to the New York Post, who say the 30-year-old could take the nuclear option if he can’t force his way out of Brooklyn sooner than later.

Irving told the Nets last week that he wants to leave and the two sides have apparently been unable to reach an agreement on a new contract.

Irving would leave the Nets on free agency at the end of the season if they refused to trade him by Thursday.

The Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks have both been linked with a move for Irving in the coming week. 

Irving has endured a rocky tenure in Brooklyn, beginning with his refusal to get the Covid-19 vaccine during the 2020-21 season which forced him out of the lineup for home games until New York mayor Eric Adams altered the city’s laws.

The most recent controversy to surround Irving and the nets came earlier this season when he faced backlash for tweeting a link to an ‘anti-Semitic’ film.

Irving initially refused to apologize or back down over the tweet before Brooklyn suspended him for eight games and he eventually issued an apology for sharing the 2018 documentary, which was based on a book described as ‘venomously anti-Semitic.’

Star teammate Kevin Durant also requested a trade before the current season before returning to the team.

Durant has been out of the Nets’ lineup since Jan. 8 with a right MCL sprain and the team announced last week he is expected to miss at least two more weeks.

Irving, who was selected as a starter for the 2023 All-Star Game, is averaging 27.1 points and 5.3 assists in 40 games this season and had recently carried the team on a streak of six games or more than 30 points before it was snapped against the Lakers Monday night.

The Nets are fourth in the Eastern Conference standings with a 32-20 record and play next on Monday night against the Clippers at the Barclays Center.

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