There are “credible rumblings” that the New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets will pursue Kyrie Irving during the 2019 offseason.
The New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets could be major players in 2019 free agency. Both have the cap space to sign big-name stars and it appears both have their sights set on at least one. According to Marc Stein of the New York Times, there are “credible rumblings” that the Nets and Knicks will pursue the All-Star point guard.
If either team has the cap space to sign Irving, they obviously should pursue him, at the very least. Irving is a superstar and he can drastically change the course of either franchise.
Stein went on to write:
“Kyrie Irving’s intentions are not at all clear at this point. There have been no firm indications from Irving or his camp that the All-Star guard is eyeing an exit from Boston next summer or that he’s angling to go to New York — as is often speculated.
But there are nonetheless credible rumblings in circulation that the Nets plan to pursue Irving, right alongside the Knicks, should he become a free agent on July 1, 2019.”
At this point, it’s far too early to try and predict where Irving will play in 2019. But it’s not too early to expect the Knicks and Nets to be major players in a big free agent market.
The Nets have enough cap space in 2019 to sign two max contracts and with some creative front office moves, the Knicks could find themselves in the same position.
Of course, Stein mentions that Kyrie has made “no firm indications” that he’ll even leave Boston in the offseason. But his comments about 2019 are somewhat ambiguous.
The Knicks and Nets can accelerate their respective rebuilds by acquiring a star like Irving on July 1, 2019. It’s still far too early to predict what will happen, but expect the rumblings to continue—and perhaps, grow even louder.
