There’s no better way to reveal how truly desperate you are as an NBA franchise than to trade for Kyrie Irving. On Sunday afternoon, the Dallas Mavericks burned to the ground any doubt about their situation. This team is (apparently and extremely) down bad. For the right to potentially alienate Luka Doncic, Dallas sent Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, an unprotected 2029 first-round pick, plus two second-rounders to the Brooklyn Nets for Irving and Markieff Morris.
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To say this trade puts the Mavs on an undesirable tightrope would be generous. It’s more like their front office watched the first episode of Squid Game and then immediately flew to South Korea and asked to participate.
Irving is an irrepressible showstopper whose offensive skill set remains top tier. Since returning from an eight-game suspension levied by the Nets, Irving has been one of the most efficient high-volume scorers in the league, on a team that looked like a contender before Kevin Durant injured his knee four weeks ago. He hit one of the biggest shots in NBA history and has made eight All-Star teams. But none of those reasons outweighs the downside of adding him to your team.
The Mavericks finally made the Faustian bargain that was induced by several foolish decisions from their recent past. With Doncic still only 23, it came a lot quicker than they probably hoped it would, too. Four days before this year’s trade deadline, Dallas gave in. Time and time again, Irving has shown what he is: an amazing talent who’s more erratic than effective. His employer is perpetually one bad day from an overwhelming nightmare. Irving will demand a trade, not show up to work, threaten surgery, or sleepwalk through an important game. His effort wanes. His engagement fluctuates. He’s temperamental at the worst possible moments.
There are people who will look at this trade and think, “Wow, Dallas now has two All-Star starters! Superteam?!” These people are very confused. Irving’s production does not align with his aesthetic. He’s made only three All-NBA teams in his career, and has not gotten out of the second round since 2017. That was a long time ago! He’s now a couple of months from his 31st birthday and reportedly demanding a four-year max contract that no rational person would think is a good idea.
But Dallas clearly thinks Kyrie (ironically enough) is the solution to its self-inflicted problems. The Mavericks’ 2019 blockbuster move for an injured Kristaps Porzingis was a dud. The decision not to extend Jalen Brunson last season, then lose him to the Knicks in free agency, is still a wet egg on their face. And now this Kyrie trade is a potentially disastrous double-down that comes off even worse when you step back and take a deep breath. The Mavericks are currently 28-26 with a top-10 offense. Doncic’s workload is immense, but when he’s on the floor they have a top-five net rating. A catastrophe this is not.
Dallas clearly believes it’s headed that way if it does nothing, though. The team’s brain trust (most notably GM Nico Harrison and head coach Jason Kidd) must think they can insulate themselves from the internal damage Irving will inevitably commit. Good luck to them both. This is the most perplexing and obtuse personality in the league, a toxic asset who’s not worth two quality starters, let alone an unprotected first-round pick, let alone the four-year, $198.5 million pact Mark Cuban will reportedly have to offer this summer if he doesn’t want to lose everything they forked over in this trade for nothing.
Doncic is a generational talent in the first year of a maximum contract that he can opt out of in 2026. He won’t be patient forever and Dallas’s path to finding him a star-level sidekick wasn’t obvious before today. But there had to be a better short-term salve on the table, because Irving can’t be the long-term answer for anything worthwhile. The reward does not justify the risk. Best-case scenario: Everyone stays healthy and on their best behavior, then Dallas wins a playoff series or two. Worst-case scenario: Doncic is around Irving every day and decides any franchise that would trade for him is not one he wants to be a part of anymore.
The Mavericks put all their eggs in a basket that’s perpetually been slammed around and stomped on. They had one big swing left to find Luka a costar and this was it. It cost them two starters: Dinwiddie (an aggressive ball handler averaging 17.7 points and making 40.5 percent of his 3s this season) and Finney-Smith (their most important defender, who doubles as one of Doncic’s favorite teammates), plus one of the only two future first-round picks they can make available.
If they want to upgrade in a meaningful way from here, Josh Green, Jaden Hardy, and Tim Hardaway Jr. are the chips they have to use. Again: good luck to them. And even as a team that can potentially open up about $25 million worth of cap space this summer if the Irving experiment goes sour and every other cap hold is renounced, who exactly are they adding to this roster that can make them a contender? Russell Westbrook? D’Angelo Russell? Nikola Vucevic? Kyle Kuzma? That’s a (depressing) question for another day. For now, let’s talk fit.
The Mavericks didn’t replace Brunson with Irving, so much as swap Brunson, Finney-Smith, and Dinwiddie for Irving and Christian Wood. If everything clicks, their offense has a chance to be special; Kidd can stagger his backcourt minutes to ensure their Luka-less lineups now have some punch.
But it’s unclear whether Irving complements Doncic in any way beyond taking some responsibilities off his plate, which—controversial opinion incoming!—may not be the wisest strategic path. Getting Doncic some help sounds great, but how much will he be willing to sacrifice for an incoming player who’s used to jacking up 20 shots a night?
Furthermore, Dallas reached the Western Conference finals last year on the back of their defense. That identity is gone. Who will guard Kawhi Leonard and/or Paul George in a playoff series? Or Devin Booker? Or Jamal Murray, Ja Morant, or De’Aaron Fox?
This team’s closing five is now full of question marks on that end. Kyrie, Luka, Hardaway, Wood, and someone else—be it Dwight Powell, Reggie Bullock, or a healthy Maxi Kleber—isn’t stopping anything. Doncic is a genius and sometimes it feels like his team has a chance regardless of who’s around him or what he’s up against. But scoring on the Mavericks will not be a riddle that opposing head coaches will need a lot of time to solve.
Dallas tried to get closer to a title by making this trade. Instead, it may have taken a costly step in the opposite direction. A championship isn’t realistic. What is, though, is irreparable damage with their young MVP candidate.
