It’s been a wild week for Brooklyn Nets fans. From learning there’s a chance Kyrie Irving will rejoin the team this season, to Joe Harris trade rumors, to seven players entering the health and safety protocols before Tuesday’s game against Toronto, we’re just happy to still be in one piece.
It hasn’t been a typical few days for the Nets, and hopefully the players and coaches in the protocol are doing fine. That’s of the utmost importance.
Beyond that, the heads of fans must be swirling right about now wondering if Irving is going to play for Brooklyn this year. If that happens, the 20-8 Nets will be granted a huge advantage.
Kevin Durant is playing some of the best basketball of his 14-year career. It’s hard to not daydream about what the playoffs will look like with a healthy Big Three. So after Brooklyn beat Toronto in overtime on Tuesday night, the media posed a question to Durant about Irving’s potential return.
Kevin Durant declined to comment on his conversations with Kyrie Irving meaning any optimism for Kyrie playing this season
— Nets Videos (@SNYNets) December 15, 2021
"Kyrie's my brother. We talk about everything. I'd rather keep those conversations in-house though" pic.twitter.com/JMTv24AXOl
Kevin Durant comments on possible Kyrie Irving return after Brooklyn Nets win.
According to Shams Charania, KD and Irving have increased their communication in recent weeks, discussing game film and the point guard’s fit in the current lineup. That’s big news, but of course, Durant isn’t going to sit in front of the media and tell them everything he knows about Irving’s current stance on playing for the Nets again.
However, notice how KD said that the two “talk about everything.” Does that encompass Irving returning to the court? We don’t want to dig too deep into the Irving speculation until it’s clear that he’s going to play for Brooklyn this season, but after receiving no news for the past few months, it seems like things are trending in the right direction.
Kyrie Irving posted a video of himself putting on basketball sneakers one day after reports that he may return to the court this season 👀 @brkicks pic.twitter.com/TK8d6idJPJ
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 14, 2021
There’s still no update on how Irving is going to return to the team, whether it be by receiving the COVID-19 vaccine or the Nets loosening up on their restrictions, and while KD opting to answer this question in some capacity in the postgame was encouraging, it didn’t really change much.
Brooklyn’s offense could use the 26.9 points per game that Irving averaged last year. Plus, his presence at point guard would move James Harden back to shooting guard, which could be a blessing in disguise.
Irving has been staying in shape, too, but it’s not clear as to how long it’ll take him to play in a game if he rejoins the Nets. He hasn’t played in a game in six months, so his return to the court shouldn’t be immediate.
As of right now, there’s still plenty of time for him to return and adjust to the team before the playoffs begin in mid-April. It’d be nice to get to see Irving, Durant, and Harden share the floor again.
Keep your fingers crossed, Brooklyn fans.
Did Kyrie Irving just respond to report about potential return to Nets?
A day after it was reported that there was increased optimism about Kyrie Irving rejoining the Brooklyn Nets this year, he posted a video on Instagram.