Ky eager to work out extension, ‘make Brooklyn home’

PHILADELPHIA — Just as they had this summer, Kyrie Irving’s camp has reiterated his desire to stay in Brooklyn.

And revealed the lack of a suitable offer from the Nets.

Irving wants a contract extension to stay with his hometown team, but productive talks haven’t materialized, according to the All-Star point guard’s agent.

“Around Kyrie and staying with the Nets? I have reached out to the Nets regarding this. We have had no significant conversations to date,” Irving’s agent and stepmother Shetellia Irving told Bleacher Report. “The desire is to make Brooklyn home, with the right type of extension, which means the ball is in the Nets’ court to communicate now if their desire is the same.”

There are all-important caveats there. The right type of extension, followed by a huge if.

After the Nets gave Irving permission to seek trade partners over the summer, the guard’s camp told The Post that he was intent on returning to Brooklyn. He did so on a one-year option, and now is eligible for a four-year, $198 million contract, according to former Nets assistant general manager Bobby Marks.

That, so far, has been hard to come by.

Irving had been eligible for a full five-year max contract two summers ago, but his refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19 resulted in talks breaking down and the offer being pulled. He missed twothirds of last season due to his vaccine stance, and when talks this past summer got testy, he flirted with opting out and leaving via unrestricted free agency before eventually opting in to the final $36 million year of his initial deal.

When Irving has played this season, he has been nothing short of stellar. He’s on pace to not only make his eighth NBA All-Star team, but is the top vote getter among all Eastern Conference guards, averaging 26.7 points, 5.1 rebounds and five assists entering the Nets’ 137-133 loss to the 76ers.

But the “when he has played” is a vital disclaimer. Irving served an eight-game suspension without pay for promoting an anti-Semitic movie, and the Nets may understandably be gun-shy about giving him a long-term extension.

“Well, I think a lot of the things that have happened throughout the season are in the rearview,” Irving said after leading the Nets’ comefrom-behind victory at defending champion Golden State on Sunday.

“I haven’t forgot about them but it’s something that I don’t prioritize as much because the team is most important here and am trying to prepare the best way I know how mentally, physically and emotionally. So I feel like we’re past that as an organization and a team me individually stronger mentally.”

The timing of the report is notable. Irving entered Wednesday averaging 38.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 7.3 assists in his prior three appearances, the first time in his career he’d ever posted 30 points, five boards and five dimes in three consecutive games. He finished with 30 points, 10 assists, two rebounds, two steals and four turnovers on Wednesday.