How Kyrie Irving’s opt-in decision impacts Heat. And Nikola Jovic introduced in Miami

On the day the Miami Heat introduced first-round pick Nikola Jovic in a news conference held at FTX Arena, social media was instead buzzing Monday about whether the Heat could acquire Kyrie Irving or Kevin Durant from the Brooklyn Nets.

Kristian Winfield from the Daily News reported Monday morning that Irving’s camp requested and received permission from the Nets to speak with other teams about sign-and-trade packages and Durant had yet to speak with Nets general manager Sean Marks this offseason as he waited to see how the Irving situation unfolded.

As NBA free agency and summer league nears, Heat’s busiest stretch of offseason is here

But hours later, Irving ultimately decided to opt into his $36.5 million player option for this upcoming season to return to the Nets because a sign-and-trade scenario didn’t materialize. The Athletic’s Shams Charania was the first to report the news Monday night.

With Irving now on track to be on Brooklyn’s roster this upcoming season, barring a trade, it appears that Durant will also remain with the Nets.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported last week that the Heat, Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Los Angeles Clippers, Dallas Mavericks and Philadelphia 76ers were the teams Irving had interest in joining.

But the Heat had far more interest in acquiring Durant than Irving, according to a source close to the situation. Acquiring Irving comes with a risk because his availability has become a major issue, as he played in just 20 regular-season games in 2019-20 in part because of a shoulder injury, 54 regular-season games in 2020-21 that included absences because of personal reasons and 29 regular-season games last season because of his unwillingness to get vaccinated against COVID-19 while playing in a city that had a vaccine mandate in place.

The Heat was not willing to give up its top assets in a deal to acquire Irving, especially in a sign-and-trade transaction that would have also required investing a long-term contract in him. Wojnarowski reported Monday afternoon before Irving opted in that “outside of the Lakers, there are currently no known teams planning pursuit of sign-and-trades for Nets G Kyrie Irving” and “Brooklyn isn’t believed to have interest in available Lakers packages.

Irving’s talent is undeniable and he’s considered one of the league’s top scorers, as he has averaged 23.1 points on 47 percent shooting from the field, 39.3 percent shooting from three-point range and 88.2 percent shooting from the foul line during his 11 NBA seasons. But concerns regarding his availability seemingly left teams hesitant in aggressively pursuing him this offseason.

Irving could have opted out of his $36.5 million option and taken a huge pay cut to sign with a contending team. The list of teams with serious interest in adding Irving would have naturally been longer if he went that route.

According to Wojnarowski, Irving had “great interest” in joining the Lakers. Irving could made that a reality by opting out and signing with the Lakers for the $6.4 million taxpayer midlevel exception.

The Heat could have offered more in that scenario because it has the $10.3 million non-taxpayer midlevel exception available to use.

But that type of move would have required Irving to accept a pay cut of more than $20 million for next season. In the end, Irving chose the $36.5 million salary in his contract with the Nets.

It’s worth noting that the Nets can still work to trade Irving as an expiring contract even after he opted in. He’s entering the final season of a four-year, $136.5 million deal he signed in the 2019 offseason.

Opting in only means that Irving is no longer eligible to get the immediate long-term, max-level deal he was looking for as part of a sign-and-trade move.

There would have been significant interest from numerous teams, including the Heat, in adding Durant if he would have become available. Durant’s four-year, $194 million contract extension he signed with the Nets last summer begins this upcoming season.

Durant, who turns 34 in September, is still considered to be among the league’s top players even after undergoing surgery to repair a ruptured Achilles tendon in 2019. He averaged 29.9 points while shooting 51.8 percent from the field and 38.3 percent from three-point range, 7.4 rebounds and 6.4 assists this past season.

But Irving and Durant appear to be staying with the Nets ... for now.

Free agent negotiations around the NBA are allowed to begin Thursday at 6 p.m.

JOVIC’S INTRODUCTION

After selecting Jovic with the 27th overall pick in last week’s NBA Draft, the Heat held the Serbian forward’s introductory news conference on Monday afternoon at FTX Arena.

Minutes after posing for a photo opportunity with his Heat jersey alongside coach Erik Spoelstra and team president Pat Riley, Jovic admitted amid the draft whirlwind that “I still don’t believe what’s happening.”

“Walking down this hallway and seeing all those pictures with championships, you just want to work,” Jovic said while sitting in the FTX Arena interview room. “I still don’t believe what’s happening. I think when I step on the court, I will actually feel like an NBA player. But now it’s just a dream come true.”

Jovic, who turned 19 on June 9, will accompany the Heat’s summer league team to San Francisco this week to begin summer practices. Jovic and the Heat open summer league on Saturday against the Lakers at Chase Center as part of the California Classic.

“It’s just a great process for him to start in the summer league,” Riley said of Jovic. “Just let it fly because we’re not going to try to overcoach him in a week and he’ll start learning from that standpoint. So it’s a great situation to have the summer league.”

Jovic said he “can’t wait to play” in games.

Among Jovic’s skills that will be on display this summer are his impressive ball-handling, passing ability and shooting all while standing at 6-foot-11 and 223 pounds. Jovic said most of those qualities were developed while he was playing as a guard before a big growth spurt that’s ongoing and could eventually get him to a height of 7 feet.

“I was always smaller and I was actually playing point guard or shooting guard. It just helped me,” Jovic said. “Now I can do almost anything on the court. So I think one of the most important things is that I’ve been growing through the years. I actually got taller from the last year. So this year also I was growing a little bit. I don’t know when it will stop. But whatever happens, happens.”