Mark Cuban: “Irving knows it’s Doncic’s team”

Last season was a nightmare for the Dallas Mavericks, who finished the campaign without making the playoffs. The season started off positively, but it was Mark Cuban’s commitment to sign Kyrie Irving that changed the dynamics. Included in that transfer were a couple of players who were key to Luka Doncic’s game - both sacrificed to bring in a player with prodigious talent, but with many irregularities. The team didn’t make it to the play-in and caused a controversy for letting themselves lose the penultimate game. Now it seems that the owner wants to turn the situation around.

Cuban stopped by to chat to NBA Radio during the Summer League and discussed a number of topics, including the current state of affairs with his team, his star duo and answer any questions about who is the franchise player of the Mavs. “I think Kyrie is mature to the point where he knows that it’s Luka’s team. He knows, and that’s what’s important, and he’s willing to play more of a shooting guard role. When Luka is out, we have a point guard who can score and create for other guys. They’re both players who make their teammates better, and we didn’t have that before,” he said.

Kyrie recently signed a extension with the Mavs - three years and 126 million dollars. The owner also spoke about the causes of the team’s downfall last season: “Once Luka went out we struggled, we struggled mightily, and we put a lot of pressure on Luka. We did struggle defensively after the trade but that was for a lot of reasons. It wasn’t Luka or Kyrie, but offensively you know we had one of the top lineups, we were the top two or three in the NBA”, he added. Cuban’s words display great faith in the point guard, considering that there was very little interest for him in the market.

His comments also make it crystal clear that Doncic is the team’s main man, removing any doubt of continuity in the Texan franchise. Every year there are rumors that the Slovenian is unhappy with the level of the squad and this season could prove decisive for both parties. The movements in free agency have allowed a leap in quality in rotation. Grant Williams’ arrival has been the most acclaimed. Other important movements have been the arrival of Seth Curry, one of the best shooters in the league and who was a teammate of Doncic’s for a season, and the other great signing has been that of Dante Exum who has once again crossed the pond. The Australian returns to the NBA after passing through Barcelona and Partizan.