NBA
Mavs out of NBA Playoffs: what has been the record after the arrival of Irving with Doncic?
Since the February bombshell transfer to the Dallas Mavericks, Kyrie Irving has raised many topics about his suitability to the Mavs’ style of play.
You have to give it to the Mavs organization for endeavoring in the experiment of connecting two of the most point-prolific players of the league in recent times. It was a gambit move from Mark Cuban and his Mavs, bringing and attempting to make a productive duo of Luka and Kyrie.
As the Mavs lost in their penultimate regular-season game against the Chicago Bulls last night and lost any theoretical chance to make the playoffs, it looks like the bet they’ve made in bringing the All-Star point guard did not give them any returns, results-, and championship-wise.
But how much of Kyrie’s performance is responsible for the disappointing Dallas Mavericks season, and maybe the biggest upset of the season, considering they came into this one like the Western Conference finalist?
Mavs’ record since his arrival
The Dallas Mavericks have acquired eight-time All-Star Kyrie Irving and Markieff Morris from the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a 2029 first-round pick, and two future second-round picks. Irving came to the Mavericks team after averaging 27.1 points, 5.3 assists, and 5.1 rebounds during the season for his team, the Brooklyn Nets.
NBA:
First thing first, the Dallas Mavericks have recorded an 8-17 win-loss record since Irving’s arrival, but this is just not a realistic stat for defining Mavs’ quality, knowing that 19 of their 24 games have come down to clutch time. Clutch time is defined here as when the game is within five points in the final five minutes. So in the time before the trade, Dallas had a 20-14 record in clutch time, a record-tying number of wins in the NBA. After Kyrie came on the roster, their score was 5-14 in those situations, five more defeats than any other team. They are just 20th in offensive rating during the clutch time since the trade but are a top-10 team the rest of the game.
To put that in perspective, only four teams have worse records over that span: The Pistons, Rockets, Spurs, and the Trail Blazers, who recently shut down Damian Lillard.
Even Irving addressed this issue in one of his interviews: “We’ve just been losing tough ones, emotionally draining, but at the same time we’re professionals,...”
The Dallas Mavericks are also shocking at 4-11 when Doncic and Irving play together. If the Mavs decide to re-sign Irving for a longer deal, this will be necessary to address and work on.