UPDATED 5/14/19 3:13 p.m. ET: During a recent interview on the Stephen A. Smith Show podcast, Marc Stein said a source told him the Nets are also in play to potentially get Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. "They might be a package deal, but they're gonna look at the Nets just as hard as the Knicks," he explained.
See original story published on 5/13/19 below.
Throughout the season, Kyrie Irving's free agency has been looming. Now with the Celtics out of the playoffs, it's time for Irving to decide where he will sign. Although he has yet to announce a decision, ESPN's Stephen A. Smith believes Irving will be playing at Madison Square Garden next year.
On Wednesday, Smith told his First Take co-hosts that people close to Irving's team have instructed him to dead the rumors that the point guard will be going to Los Angeles. "I got a text message from folks close to Kyrie's family within the hour when we were teasing the subject," Smith explained. "Quote: 'There's no way in hell he's going to L.A.'"
This could quiet the noise that Irving will rejoin LeBron James by signing with the Lakers. With that allegedly off the table, Smith went on to reveal that his sources are telling him Irving and Kevin Durant will sign with the New York Knicks instead of playing in the cluttered Western Conference.
"From everything I've been hearing over the last few days...Kyrie Irving is heading to Madison Square Garden with Kevin Durant," Smith continued. "People in his inner circle are trying to bring the Nets into the mix, but clearly New York will be the destination. The likelihood is that it will be MSG."
Smith stating the Nets or the Knicks will land Irving coincides the Vegas odds. Last week it was reported that SuperBooks has the Nets (+250) as the front runners to sign Irving, followed by the Knicks (+300).
