Kyrie Irving was supposed to be LeBron James 2.0 in Cleveland and Cavaliers fans might find out just how true that description really is sooner rather than later. The point guard was drafted to help the void of the departed James who bolted for the Miami Heat. As Cleveland continues to struggle on the court and in the front office, Irving is looking more and more likely to bolt like the one before him.
According to ESPN's Brian Windhorst members of Irving's camp believe the point guard wants out of Cleveland as soon as possible. While the team has every plan of offering him a max contract, Irving is ready to move on a play for a team more suited to win now and not later.
The Cavaliers can offer Irving a maximum deal on July 1. If the point guard has not signed the offer by October, the team may be forced to trade Irving by the Oct. 31 deadline for third-year players. Irving does not sound like the kind of guy that is not looking to sign that max contract offer, but the deal could actually work in his favor.
Windhorst details just how much leverage the Cavaliers actually have in retaining Irving. The team can match any deal offered to Irving when he becomes a restricted free agent in 2015. The team controls all of his rights until 2016. That holdout period could cost the young star a lot of money and if he were to get injured during that time period all could be lost for him.
So far, Irving has said all of the right things to try and sell that he wants to remain in Cleveland. The point guard has denied all departure rumors. He has praised teammates like Tristan Thompson and Dion Waiters and spoken in support of Dan Gilbert. However, each time a rumor surfaces about his pending departure, one can only wonder how true Irving's statements are. Gilbert has no time for a franchise player who is not fully invested in the team. He went through that ordeal with James and has no plans of repeating the show.
Windhorst suggests that while Irving may want out of Cleveland, the smart business move would be to sign the contract offer by the Cavaliers. Negotiating his future would come at a big cost for the point guard. His stats are down this season as the team struggles to stay above .500 on the year. If he makes them sweat out negotiations, Irving might at least be able to parlay a better deal than originally offered.
Irving will likely take the road of James and stay with Cleveland longer than intended. When he finally does hit free agency, his game will have improved and every team will be ready to offer him a lot of money.
