Brooklyn Nets: Kyrie Irving was the biggest loser in the James Harden deal

Kyrie Irving was the big loser in the James Harden trade

The NBA stole headlines this week when news broke that the Houston Rockets had agreed to trade former MVP guard James Harden to the Brooklyn Nets in a four-team blockbuster deal.

Not only did the association steal headlines, but they also stole the NHL’s thunder dropping this bombshell on the opening day of the 2021 NHL season. The NBA also took a bit of the NFL’s momentum just days before their big divisional round weekend. So, the NBA is on fire now with plenty of buzz to go around.

Having seen so many horrible games already this season a blockbuster trade is just what the NBA needed.

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Now that the dust has settled, and the shock has worn off, we must now debate who won and lost in this trade. The obvious winner in this trade on the surface looks to be the Nets. This may even be debatable to a certain extent. The biggest loser in this deal is so much easier to identify.

The biggest loser in the deal wasn’t even apart of the actual transaction. When this trade is looked back upon in the next few months, it will be clear who the biggest loser was coming out of it.
Nets guard Kyrie Irving is the biggest loser at the table.

Yes, the same Kyrie Irving that has been M.I.A. and has not played in an NBA game in over a week. By now Irving’s saga and his “excused” absence from the Nets has been talked about ad nauseam.

There are reports that Kyrie is unhappy. Allegedly, he was not a fan of the Steve Nash hire to begin with. Irving was also upset that he wasn’t more involved in the hiring of a head coach. Which could explain Irving’s comments about the Nets not really “needing” a head coach a few months back. Comments, Irving did eventually walk back and “apologize” for.

So, now at the snap of a finger, Irving goes from being the No. 2 option on the court and supposed leader of this team to now being the third scoring option behind two former league MVP’s. In no way shape or form is Irving going to be happy about this trade.

Many rumors are swirling around the reason for Irving’s recent absence from the team, so with nothing being confirmed yet publicly, it is not fair to speculate. Hopefully, Irving isn’t dealing with anything truly serious that will keep him off the court for an extended period.

With the way this season has suddenly turned though for the Nets, would anyone be shocked if Irving continued to sit out even longer than he already has?

To be quite honest, it would not be surprising to see him sit out the rest of the season. Kyrie just doesn’t seem like he’s someone who plans on playing until he has to be dragged off the court. Irving will be 29 years old in March, yet it doesn’t feel like he will be playing NBA basketball into his 30’s.

Whatever the issue is, if this team can get it together and get Irving, Harden, and Kevin Durant to buy into team ball, you can go ahead and pencil this trio into the eastern conference finals right now. There is only one ball on the court, so if Irving does return to the team it will be quite interesting to see how this team functions moving forward.

Irving wanted out of Cleveland because he did not want to play second fiddle to LeBron James. If Irving refused to play second fiddle to James, then how can anyone expect him to take another step back, and be the third option behind both Durant and Harden? It does not seem plausible.
Good luck to Steve Nash, and his attempt at managing these personalities for the remainder of the season.