Brooklyn Nets' Kyrie Irving to Sit For Saturday's Game Against Washington Wizards

The Brooklyn Nets will be short yet another star for their Saturday matchup with the Washington Wizards. Following his shocking trade request on Thursday afternoon, Kyrie Irving will sit for this evening's game with right calf soreness.

Nets say Kyrie Irving (right calf soreness)
and Ben Simmons (left knee soreness) are out tonight Vs Washington.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) February 4, 2023

The Nets will also be without starting guard Ben Simmons. Leading scorer Kevin Durant continues to miss time with a knee sprain suffered on January 8th.

Irving turned the NBA landscape on its head by requesting a trade from the Nets yesterday, so appearing in tonight's game in front of the Brooklyn faithful would likely have been an awkward situation for the mercurial eight-time All Star. If Irving has his way, his days as a Nets player will be over before he ever has to take the court at the Barclays Center again: the rapidly approaching trade deadline is February 9th.

Despite appearing to be on the brink of utter collapse, the Nets are 31-20 and fourth place in the Eastern Conference. If by some miracle they can settle their differences with Irving (or get a solid return in a trade), they still have a chance to make some noise in the playoffs. Durant remains one of the NBA's very best players, and he should be back before long.

Following tonight's game against the Wizards, the Nets host the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night.