Wednesday was quite the day for NBA news, specifically pertaining to the Boston Celtics.
Kyrie Irving reportedly opted out of his deal, the Celtics reportedly engaged in trade talks with the New Orleans Pelicans, Aron Baynes opted into his player option and Irving fired his agent to join ROC Nation. So yes, it was a busy day.
But before the day’s end, we received one more offseason nugget, per Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald:
“According to multiple league sources, Irving still has not removed the Celtics from consideration as he contemplates where to sign as a free agent, though the assumption around the NBA was he was looking to go elsewhere to join up with another marquee free agent. That concept was placed in some measure of doubt when Kevin Durant — the most prominent of the potential 2019 free agents — suffered a ruptured Achilles’ tendon in Game 5 of the NBA Finals Monday night.”
Celtics fans will be happy to hear this, after the momentum of the point guard heading to the Brooklyn Nets has picked up steam of late.
Of course, as Bulpett notes, Durant’s Achilles injury throws a wrench into this summer’s free agency, with the possibility of him opting into one more year with the Golden State Warriors becoming more likely. Whether it impacts where Irving ends up remains to be seen.
Regardless, the next few months are sure to be chaotic, especially considering all that’s happened in the last 24 hours alone.