NBA
Shockwaves in the NBA with Kyrie Irving set to join Dallas Mavericks
The Mavs secure Kyrie Irving who will play alongside Luka Doncic in a NBA trade that will generate global headlines for weeks.
An NBA bombshell as Kyrie Irving is set to play alongside Luka Doncic for the Dallas Mavericks.
The news, which broke on Sunday was reported almost simultaneously by both Shams Charania (The Athletic) and Adrian Wojnarowki (ESPN) and puts an end to the soap opera that started a few days ago, when Irving asked for the trade.
Who did Kyrie Irving get traded for?
Kyrie’s talent and contradictory behaviour is headed to Dallas in a trade in which the Mavericks send Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, Markieff Morris to Brooklyn as part of the deal.
The world of basketball is reeling by the move that was expected closer to the 9 February deadline, but which has been precipitated by the Nets’ need to get something for a star player who was going to leave for free in the summer, when he would have been a free agent.
Polarising character
Kyrie Irving is one of the most controversial personalities in NBA history. After his departure from the Cavs, he spent time with both Boston before moving to Brooklyn and now embarks on a new adventure in heading to Dallas. The point guard has gone from claiming the earth is flat to rejecting the coronavirus vaccine and his recent polemic came earlier this season when he recommended a movie based on an anti-Semitic book earlier this season. The fallout from his views caused uproar and also led to an internal sanction by the the Nets.
Irving is a complex individual and already speculation is rife as to what type of relationship he will have with Mavs star player Luka Doncic. The Mavericks lost Jalen Brunson in the summer and are 0-7 in Doncic’s absence (due to injury) and are in need of a second-string point guard beyond the Slovenian. Irving can deliver the goods on the court but many in the game feel he is a ticking time bomb and never far from controversy which can hamper and overshadow his performances.
Mavs General Manager Nico Harrison knows Kyrie from his days at Nike (the brand that turned its back on him after his anti-Semitic comments) and Mavs coach Jason Kidd has given the go-ahead for the trade. The Lakers were reportedly very close to acquiring the point guard’s services, but the Mavs offer was preferred.
The 30-year-old will be a free agent in the summer and wanted to secure a four-year deal, but for the moment there is no news of what might happen between him and the Mavericks after the end of the season.