The Brooklyn Nets apparently were bracing for Kyrie Irving to leave the organization and find a new home this summer.
Irving on Monday made a short-term commitment to the Nets by signing his $36.5 million player option for the 2022-23 season. The star point guard delivered the news to the masses through a pretty bizarre statement, which reportedly is how Brooklyn found out Irving was staying pat as well.
And according to ESPN's Brian Windhorst, Irving opting in was an unforeseen development within the organization.
"I was told that the option pickup came as a total surprise to the Nets, that they found out when everybody did," the NBA insider said on the "Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective" podcast, as transcribed by NBC Sports.
One could argue the Nets should not have been very surprised by Irving opting in. The seven-time All-Star probably would have been forced to leave around $30 million on the table if he opted out and signed with a team on his reported wish list in free agency. That said, Brooklyn is coming off a season in which it watched Irving forfeit quite a bit of cash, so it's easy to understand why the franchise felt a big financial sacrifice was within the realm of possibility.
Irving has a penchant for causing headaches, but his opt-in might have been a pleasant surprise for the Nets. Not only did Brooklyn not succumb to the guard's long-term wishes, but it also seemingly avoided having to do damage control with Kevin Durant.
