The news is significant because Dinwiddie, 27, has a player option to opt out of his contract after a fifth year with the Nets in 2021. Dinwiddie is entering the second of a three-year contract that he signed Dec. 13, 2018, for roughly $34 million.

His player option for the 2021-22 season is an approximate salary of $12 million. However, he could hit NBA free agency next offseason instead, testing the market for a team in need of a starting guard after coming off the Nets' bench.

With certified stars such as Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving back to full health after an injury-plagued 2019-20, plus Caris LeVert's emergence, Dinwiddie projects as the Nets' sixth man in 2020-21. Dinwiddie took advantage of an expanded role in 2019-20 by averaging a career-high 20.8 points, 3.5 rebounds and 6.8 assists in 31.2 minutes while starting 49 of 64 games.

While he is unsure of his exact spot as a starter or bench player for the Nets in 2020-21, Dinwiddie said last Friday on ESPN's The Jump that he knows his place on a Durant- and Irving-led team. Dinwiddie compared his potential role to Draymond Green on the Golden State Warriors from 2014-19, when a handful of players -- including Steph Curry (2009-present), Klay Thompson (2011-present) and Durant (2016-19) -- starred over Green (2012-present).

"Obviously, we don't know who's going to start and who's going to come off the bench, as of right now -- and that's with KD and Kyrie excluded, of course," he said. "But really, when all this was being formed, I viewed myself as -- we were going to take the Golden State model, as kind of the Draymond Green, the glue, you know? Sometimes I get 10 boards, sometimes I get 10 assists, sometimes I score a little bit more -- whatever it is -- because, obviously, we have a super dynamic point guard and we also have the greatest scorer of all time.

"So that's kind of how I always viewed myself when it was being talked about and put together. So I would be blessed to have that role this year and try to win a championship."

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