NBA News: Kyrie Irving Claims He's With Brooklyn Nets for Long Run

The Brooklyn Nets shocked the basketball world a few offseasons ago as they made not one but two major signings in the same free agency period.

With all eyes on former Golden State Warriors superstar Kevin Durant, many expected Durant to take his talents to New York. While they assumed the right state, Durant surprised the NBA when he landed a deal with the Brooklyn Nets.

Meanwhile, former Boston Celtics guard Kyrie Irving joined him. 

Since Durant and Irving linked and finally got on the floor together during the 2020-2021 season, they formed a big three as the Nets traded for James Harden from the Houston Rockets.

At first, it seemed all three players were committed to keeping their trio together in Brooklyn for the long haul. Durant guaranteed he would stick around by inking an extension this past offseason. However, Harden not only declined his player option for next season, but he eventually demanded a trade.

At this point, Harden is a member of the Philadelphia 76ers. Harden's urgency to get out of Brooklyn signaled there could be problems inside the Nets' organization, but it seems all remains well in Brooklyn as Kyrie Irving is confident he'll be there long-term.

Kyrie's Confident He'll Stay in Brooklyn

"To be honest, I signed up for this for the long run," Irving said. "I love this year. I'm grateful. It has not been the prototypical year. But when I look at my teammates and I look at what we have as an organization. I'm looking for the long run and what we can do, legacy talk."

"For me, it has always been about being comfortable and loving where I'm at. I love it here," Irving said. "Once that summer time hits, I know we'll have some conversations but there's no way I could leave my man 7 anywhere." via ESPN

The Nets were put in a difficult situation this season. Not only did Harden force his way out, but Irving's vaccination status caused him to miss a chunk of games early on before he became a part-time player down the stretch.

Mix those two sagas in with the fact that Brooklyn battled a ton of injuries and the Nets are barely in the playoff picture. 

Regardless of everything the Nets went through this year and last season, Kyrie Irving seems to be in good spirits with Brooklyn's organization. And as long as he's suiting up alongside Durant, Brooklyn remains a problem for other Eastern Conference contenders. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.