Trade & Free Agency 2026/2027

[DanSchwartzgan]

The reason to trade him this offseason would be because you get a good offer that might not be there at the TDL.  Sometimes its easier for teams to trade for a big salary during the offseason than at the TDL.  He might have more value because you get him for the full year.  There is risk that he is not the same player he was two years ago before the injury and there is risk that he gets another big injury and tanks his value (see AD).  After this coming season, he has a team option.  He could opt out and bail and they lose him for nothing, or he could opt in and have one last year on his contract to trade, or he could opt out and they S&T him.  Given the contract situation and the fact that he will be a year older, its hard to think his value will be higher at the end of the season.  

His peak value is probably at the TDL, but there is an argument to pull the trigger now if you get a good enough offer.  There is probably some truth to your last paragraph, especially if he wants out.  But I'm not sure Kyrie wanting to stay means he is going to stay.  Masai has history of trading established big name players like Carmelo (although he wanted out), Rudy Gay and DeRozen (who had just finished 8th in MVP voting).  So far they have been very thorough in communicating they have no interest in trading Kyrie, but apparently Masai told DeRozen he was not going to trade him just days before he traded him, so I'm not sure how serious to read the comments/rumors.

The only thing I'll add is there are a number of potential suitors right now...maybe 5 or more.  That creates a market.  The TDL might create greater despiration among a smaller subset of teams, but you probably have more competition for Irving now than you will later.

You made a ton of good points.  I like it when people can have thoughtful and well reasoned discussions - as opposed to when people say things like I don't know why people just want to give Kyrie away for nothing.  Maybe I missed the post that said that.  If so, my bad.  I think the rest of us are trying to figure out what range of outcomes seems within the realm of possibilities.