Kyrie Irving exercises his option to stay with the Brooklyn Nets, will earn 36 million this season

Irving, who is a seven-time All-Star had a disappointing last season for the Nets where he averaged 27.4 points and 5.8 assists.

Kyrie Irving in a file photo. (Image credits: twitter)
By Sujay Gaurav | Jun 28, 2022 | 2 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

The Brooklyn Nets seem to have some good news and that is star guard Kyrie Irving has decided to opt in for his final year to stay at the Barclays Center. He will make $36 million this season. He confirmed his decision to stay in an interview with The Athletic where he said, “Normal people keep the world going, but those who dare to be different lead us into tomorrow. I’ve made my decision to opt in. See you in the fall.”

Irving, who is a seven-time All-Star had a disappointing last season for the Nets where he averaged 27.4 points and 5.8 assists. He’s about to enter the final season in a four-year, $137 million deal with Brooklyn where he played only 103 games over that time span because of injuries and various off-the-court issues. One of the major causes of concern for Kyrie was the COVID-19 vaccine mandate. He appeared in only 29 games in the regular season and when he did make his comeback towards the end of the regular season, the Nets got swept by the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs.

Read more: “I would never count LeBron James out” – JJ Redick

Kendrick Perkins warns that Nets cant lose Kyrie Irving

Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving is a very polarizing figure in the NBA. He is a maverick who is undoubtedly a superstar but has the potential to not show up at certain times and has irked fans and pundits alike for many years. Things got a bit ugly during the COVID pandemic and Kyrie’s insistence on not taking the COVID vaccine which made it impossible for him to play at the Barclays Center until the rule was lifted. There was hope that once he came back, things would get better for the Nets but that was not to be as they were swept by the Boston Celtics in round 1 of the playoffs.

Former NBA player and analyst Kendrick Perkins has warned that the Brooklyn outfit cannot afford to lose Kyrie. Speaking on ESPN’s First Take, Perkins said, “But because of the vaccination rule, you know, living in New York, that the rule didn’t make sense overall. We all came over here and talked about that rule. And look, Kyrie Irving ain’t the only person that was not vaccinated in the NBA, aight? We could talk about a whole list of names. We could talk about some other situations and organizations and things of that nature but I am not going to dive into that.”