NBA Trade Rumors: NBA insider believes Kyrie Irving could be traded before Kevin Durant

Adrian Wojnarowski, ESPN's senior NBA insider, entertained the possibility of the Brooklyn Nets trading Kyrie Irving first over Kevin Durant. It was recently reported that the Nets are open to trading both.

After opting into the final year of his contract, Kyrie Irving quickly got involved in trade talks after Durant requested a trade. Durant has made it known that his preferred destinations are either the Phoenix Suns or Miami Heat, the top-seeded teams in their respective conferences. Durant reportedly still wants to play with Irving, but not with the Brooklyn Nets.

A week ago, the LA Lakers and the Nets discussed swapping their All-Star guards. Could an Irving-LeBron James reunion happen? No one knows for sure. However, due to the lack of interest from other teams, the Nets might seize the opportunity and get Russell Westbrook in exchange. On "NBA Today," Wojnarowski explained how it's possible:

"It is possible," Woj said when asked if Irving could get traded first. "The Nets have been engaged with the Lakers, really here in the last week."

Wojnarwowski said

"If they got to a place where there was a deal that made sense that the Lakers wanted to do, that Brooklyn wanted to do, then Brooklyn's gotta measure the timing of it."

The Nets are trying their best to get a deal done with the Lakers, who are the only team actively interested in Irving. But because of the Lakers' hesitancy in adding some draft picks to the deal, nothing has happened yet.

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Kyrie Irving's run with the Brooklyn Nets was underwhelming

Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving

The Brooklyn Nets are looking to ship out Kyrie Irving after he caused a lot of drama. After just three years, the organization seems to have had it with Irving.

In 2019, they signed him to a four-year $136 million contract for a chance to compete for the championship. With his signing, they were able to attract forward Kevin Durant to request a sign-and-trade for the Golden State Warriors.

During his first season, the seven-time All-Star was limited to 20 games due to a shoulder injury (while Durant recovered from an Achilles tendon injury). Irving's second season was a huge success as he played 54 games and was selected as an All-Star. They were eliminated by the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round of the playoffs.

Many off-court issues surfaced last season. Irving's unwillingness to take the COVID-19 vaccine hindered him from playing for the majority of their games. By the time he was allowed to play, the third star they recruited, James Harden, already had enough.

On top of that, Durant's knee injury triggered a 3-17 slide, and they struggled together in the playoffs. The Boston Celtics swept Brooklyn in the first round.