Things have gotten worse between the Brooklyn Nets and forward Andrei Kirilenko in the last few weeks, reports Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.
Kirilenko was a healthy inactive for the Nets' last three games and won't accompany the team on their two-game road trip this weekend.
The Nets have reportedly been in contact with the Philadelphia 76ers about a possible trade involving the 33-year-old forward, but Youngmisuk notes that if such a deal were to be consummated, the 76ers would in turn waive Kirilenko's $3.3 million contract. Since the Sixers are significantly under the cap, the Brooklyn Nets wouldn't need to receive equal salary enumerations in return.
In all likelihood, freeing up some money off Brooklyn's clogged books would come at the cost of attaching a second-round pick.
Last season - under former Nets head coach Jason Kidd - Kirilenko played 19 minutes per game as a versatile, veteran defender. This season, Kirilenko's minutes have dipped to just 5.1 per contest.
If he were to be waived, Kirilenko will likely garner significant interest from a number of contending teams looking to bolster their rotation with a heady, but limited, wing defender.
