NBA Bettors Should Strongly Consider This Kevin Durant-Kyrie Irving Prop Bet

By the time the start of the 2022-23 NBA season comes around, basketball fans and media members alike might kick themselves for being so invested in the summertime chaos that came out of Brooklyn.

Kyrie Irving started the fireworks when it appeared the Nets were prepared to sever ties with the star point guard, but the grand finale for this particular show came in the form of Irving picking up his player option for the upcoming season. Of course, this move doesn’t lock Irving into playing at least another season in Brooklyn. The Nets still could find a way to trade Irving, who might have no interest in playing for Brooklyn if Kevin Durant has his trade request granted.

At this point, it’s tough to imagine one of those superstars starting the season with the Nets without the other. That’s why NBA bettors should look into an enticing prop at DraftKings Sportsbook, which offers a +380 price on Irving and Durant playing their next regular-season minute on the same team.

To be clear, this bet probably only is going to cash if KD and Irving start the season with the Nets. While many hoops followers have had fun with the idea of the duo teaming up outside of Brooklyn — perhaps in Los Angeles alongside LeBron James — trading both players to the same team feels like a pipe dream from a logistics standpoint. It’s probably going to take an unprecedented return to pry Durant from the Nets and Irving’s stock has plummeted to the point that seemingly no team is willing to go the extra mile to acquire him.

Those challenging dynamics make it reasonable to think both Irving and Durant could still be wearing a Nets uniform in mid-October. Neither player likely is interested in playing for a non-contender, and virtually no team in the upper echelon of the league is set up to/should want to swing a blockbuster. And if a satisfactory move isn’t out there, Durant and Irving might prefer to ride it out for at least one more season in Brooklyn as opposed to trying to force the issue with a team on the playoff bubble.

Hell, there’s reason to believe KD doesn’t even want to move on from the Nets at this juncture. As NBA center-turned-analyst Kendrick Perkins pointed out, Durant very well might have put out his trade request as a leverage tactic in hopes of helping Irving land a long-term extension in Brooklyn.

If Irving’s and Durant’s respective relationships with the Nets truly were fractured beyond repair, both players likely would be out of Brooklyn by now. The organization also appears to be in no rush to move either star, which leaves the door open for both players to stick around with the Nets a bit longer and for the aforementioned prop bet to cash.