At the 2016 Olympics, Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and DeAndre Jordan discussed teaming up in the NBA.
In 2019, Durant and Irving accepted incentives in their contracts so the Nets could give Jordan a four-year contract worth nearly $40 million.
Now – with two years and $19,703,440 remaining on that contract and Durant, Irving and James Harden leading Brooklyn to championship-favorite status – Jordan… appears set to leave via buyout.
Shams Charania of The Athletic:
Center DeAndre Jordan and the Nets are working toward parting ways via contract buyout, sources tell me and Alex Schiffer.
Jordan has already been linked to the Lakers.
It’s a little surprising he isn’t staying with Durant and Irving, especially on a title contender. But Jordan apparently wants to move on. The Nets accommodate their players.
Jordan’s contract has predictably aged poorly. He didn’t play in last season’s playoffs, falling behind Blake Griffin, Jeff Green and Nicolas Claxton in the rotation. James Johnson replaces Green this year, and Brooklyn drafted Day’Ron Sharpe No. 29.
But the 6-foot-11 Jordan provided a different element with his size, strength and experience. Even at age 33, he appears capable of filling a narrow role – a role the Nets might miss against 76ers star Joel Embiid.
If, in a buyout, Jordan relinquishes the equivalent of his full-season minimum salary this season plus his projected full-season minimum salary the following season… Brooklyn’s luxury-tax liability would drop by about $14 million.
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Report: DeAndre Jordan, Nets working toward buyout originally appeared on NBCSports.com