Irving reportedly requests trade
Cavs star said to want to escape from James’ shadow and become the focal point of a team
>> LOS ANGELES: Cleveland point guard Kyrie Irving has requested a trade, shocking Cavaliers superstar LeBron James, US media reported Friday.
ESPN, citing unnamed sources, first reported that the Australian-born US point guard told team owner Dan Gilbert last week that he wanted to be traded.
Cleveland.com then cited two sources as saying the 25-year-old Irving told Gilbert he wanted to escape James’s shadow and be the focal point of a team.
The news comes shortly after Irving told Sports Illustrated that the Cavaliers were “in a peculiar place” in the wake of their NBA Finals loss to the Golden State Warriors.
Since then, the Cavs’ have endured an awkward off-season. No replacement has been named for general manager David Griffin, who departed when the two sides failed to reach a contract extension.
James has reportedly voiced concern about the team’s future, fuelling speculation that he might leave his hometown club a second time. He famously departed in 2010 for Miami, won two titles and led the Heat to four finals in four years, then returned to the Cavaliers.
Irving’s agent, Jeff Wechsler, did not specifically confirm a trade request in comments to Cleveland.com.
“We met with Cavs’ leadership and we discussed many different scenarios in reference to Kyrie and his future with the team,” Wechsler said. “There were a bunch of scenarios, and I’m not going to discuss anything that was said. I don’t know where this is coming from.”
Irving was the top overall NBA Draft pick in 2011 after one season at Duke University.
Cleveland recorded losing records in his first three seasons before James returned.
The Cavs reached the NBA Finals each of the past three seasons, falling to the Warriors in 2015, beating them in 2016 and surrendering the title to them in June.
Irving has three years and US$60 million remaining on his contract. He can opt out of the final year prior to the 2019-20 season while James could opt out after next season.
WALL INKS $170M EXTENSION
Guard John Wall said on Friday he has signed a four-year contract extension with the Washington Wizards that multiple media outlets reported was worth $170 million.
Wall, 26, was eligible to sign a super-maximum contract after being named to the All-NBA Third Team last season.
The extension begins in 2019 and includes a fourth-year player option, ESPN reported.
“Signed my extension,” Wall said in a video posted on the Uninterrupted Twitter feed.
“You know where I want to be. I love being in DC, love the organisation, love my teammates, love the amazing fans. Just had to think it out with my family and friends.”
Wall, a four-time All-Star, averaged career highs in points (23.1), assists (10.7) and steals (2.0) in 78 games last season, his seventh in the NBA.
He and Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook and Houston’s James Harden were the only players to average 20 points and 10 assists last season.
Wall led the Wizards to a 49-33 record last season and the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference play-offs.
The Wizards beat the Atlanta Hawks in a six-game series before losing to the top-seeded Boston Celtics in a seven-game series in the conference semi-finals.
GASOL SIGNS WITH SPURS
Spanish 37-year-old free agent centre Pau Gasol, a six-time NBA All-Star, has agreed to a three-year deal with the San Antonio Spurs, ESPN reported on Friday.
The contract, according to unnamed sources in the ESPN website report, will include a partial guarantee in the final season for the Barcelonaborn star, who is set to start his 17th NBA campaign later this year.
Gasol, who won NBA titles in 2009 and 2010 with the Los Angeles Lakers, spent seven seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies before being traded to the Lakers in 2008. He signed as a free agent with Chicago in 2014 and San Antonio last July.
In 64 games for the Spurs last season, Gasol averaged 12.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.1 blocked shots as San Antonio went 61-21, the NBA’s second-best record behind eventual champions Golden State.
Gasol has career NBA averages of 17.9 points, 9.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.7 blocked shots over 1,119 games.