Kyrie Irving’s days in Brooklyn appear to be numbered after he reportedly issued a trade request ahead of Thursday’s deadline. The 30-year-old NBA All-Star, who will become a free agent this summer, has come to this decision after failing to negotiate terms on a new extension with the Nets.
This piece of NBA 2023 news has sparked countless speculation about his future, and it’ll be interesting to see where he ends up in the next few days.
Over in LA, his former Cavs teammate, LeBron James, is on the cusp of arguably his biggest milestone. Meanwhile, the Grizzlies, Cavaliers, Magic, and Timberwolves have made the headlines recently for the wrong reasons.
It’s been a busy week here in the Association, so continue to read on below as SBOTOP brings to you the latest about the NBA.
Irving draws interest from contenders
Three teams have emerged as front-runners to acquire Kyrie Irving as a result of his request for a trade. The Lakers, Suns, and Mavericks are said to be the top candidates, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
The Lakers being in the mix to get Irving should come as no surprise because they were once in contact with the Nets for a possible megaswap, including Russell Westbrook.
Irving was a former teammate of LeBron James in Cleveland, where they won the 2016 title after coming back from a 3-1 deficit against the 73-9 Warriors. They had three Finals appearances together before Irving left for the Celtics during the 2018-19 campaign.
His game complements LeBron James well, as he’s an excellent outside shooter and shot creator. Having him in LA would improve their offence massively, which would boost their NBA 2023 odds of making it back to the postseason.
The Suns have been searching for a long-term replacement at PG since Chris Paul is on the decline. Last week, they were reportedly looking at Fred VanVleet, Immanuel Quickley, and Terry Rozier as potential targets, but Irving is way better than those three.
The backcourt pairing of Kyrie Irving and Devin Booker with Deandre Ayton in the paint is a scary proposition for opponents, to say the least.
The Mavs, meanwhile, are looking for another elite ball handler and shot creator alongside Luka Doncic, and Irving fits the bill. They’ve been looking for one since Jalen Brunson left the team last summer for the Knicks.
James will be the league’s all-time scoring leader soon
LeBron James is 63 points away from becoming the league’s all-time leading scorer.
He’s averaging 30.1 points per game this season, and assuming he maintains his pace, he can pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar against the Thunder on Tuesday or the Bucks on Thursday.
Since James is likely to break the scoring record at home, tickets for both the Thunder and Bucks games have skyrocketed to as high as $75,000.
Once he becomes the league’s all-time leading scorer, tributes will start pouring in, and he’ll be celebrated during the 2023 NBA All-Star Game in Salt Lake City, Utah.
LeBron James is fresh from a 26-point performance in their 112-111 win over the Indiana Pacers. He also added seven rebounds and seven assists and shot 11-for-19 from the field over 33 minutes.
He has now scored at least 25 points in eight of his last 10 games. Since turning 38 years old last December, the King has averaged 34.1 points per game, which is unheard of for a guy in his 20th NBA season.
Tempers flare in Cleveland and Minnesota
Multiple players from the Cavaliers, Grizzlies, Magic, and Timberwolves were ejected most recently.
Dillon Brooks and Donovan Mitchell got into it during Thursday’s Grizzlies-Cavaliers matchup, as Brooks blatantly struck Mitchell in the groin following a drive to the rim. Mitchell hit the ball off Brooks, and a scrap broke out.
Brooks was slapped with a one-game suspension without pay for his antics, while Mitchell wasn’t suspended, although he was fined $20,000 due to his actions.
Two days later, another fight broke out between the Magic and the Timberwolves, as Mo Bamba took a swing at Austin Rivers before the two exchanged more punches and it spilled all over the court.
Bamba and Rivers weren’t the only ones who were ejected, as Taurean Prince, Jaden McDaniels, and Jalen Suggs were also sent off.
Prior to the fracas, Bamba and Markelle Fultz were seen reacting to Austin Rivers’ missed three-point shot, to which the Timberwolves guard took exception.
Just like the Grizzlies-Cavaliers incident, the NBA is expected to hand out punishments for those who were involved.
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