No Kyrie Irving Extension Coming: "Those Talks Are On Ice"!

 

It's not only Kyrie Irving's playing status that's up in the air at the moment; his contract status is also in question. He is eligible for a 4-year, $187 million dollar extension, but, according to sources, those talks are off.

Kyrie Irving FAQ: Home games in question, trade talk, contract status and more

With @TimBontemps and @WindhorstESPN https://t.co/H8QHos6UxF

— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) October 8, 2021

Kevin Durant got his massive extension signed this summer, and Nets GM Sean Marks at the time "expressed optimism" that an extension could be reached with Irving as well. 

But as ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Bobby Marks wrote on Friday, "those talks are on ice" due to the uncertainty surrounding Irving's availability to the Nets this season. 

In addition, coach Steve Nash says the Nets are "not communicating with Irving on his workouts" while he's away from the team. 

Kyrie's continued refusal to be vaccinated makes him ineligible to play in all 41 Brooklyn Nets home games due to New York City's vaccination mandate. He would be forfeiting more than $17 million dollars in pay ($380,000 per game). 

Then the question becomes, is it worth the headache of having a part-time player to even keep him around for the road games? As Bontemps and Marks note, "teams could be reluctant to trade for Irving" for some pretty obvious reasons, including his tendency to take games off without permission (as he did last season), his conspiracy theory tendencies, unvaccinated status, and general unreliability. 

Irving does have 2 years and $71 million left on his current contract, but could opt out after this season, leaving other teams with another compelling reason not to trade for him. 

Friday night marks his first missed game, a home preseason affair with the Milwaukee Bucks. That's $380k and counting...

Photo Credit: Nicole Sweet-USA TODAY Sports