Report: Kyrie Irving Traded to Mavericks from Nets for Spencer Dinwiddie, Picks, More

The Brooklyn Nets have reportedly traded guard Kyrie Irving to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for a package including Spencer Dinwiddie and multiple draft picks.

Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported the deal:

Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes reported details of offers Brooklyn received from the Los Angeles Lakers and the Phoenix Suns:

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported Irving is expected to take a physical in Dallas on Monday, with his Mavericks debut likely to come on Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Clippers.

Irving has played 143 games for the Nets over three-plus seasons, averaging 27.1 points and 5.8 assists along the way. He has 27.1 PPG and 5.3 APG this year.

There's no denying Irving's immense talent. He's an eight-time All-Star and three-time All-NBA player who helped guide the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers to an NBA championship. The 12-year veteran is one of the game's top backcourt scorers, and he's a tremendous on-court asset.

However, he was sidelined for numerous reasons during his Nets tenure, which began when he and Kevin Durant joined forces in free agency to sign with Brooklyn in the summer of 2019.

A right shoulder injury served as the catalyst for missing all but 20 games in 2019-20. He missed 18 more regular-season games in 2020-21, including 11 for personal reasons. Irving also missed three-plus games during the Nets' second-round playoff series against the Milwaukee Bucks because of a sprained right ankle.

Irving then missed 53 of his team's 82 games in 2021-22 largely because of his refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

New York City's then-COVID-19 vaccine mandate prevented him from playing home games at Barclays Center.

The Nets announced before the season that they would not play Irving until he was eligible to become a full participant. That all changed when the Nets became significantly short-handed because of injury or the league's health-and-safety protocols, and he began playing most road games beginning Jan. 5 against the Indiana Pacers.

The Nets' season ended with a four-game sweep at the hands of the eventual Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs.

After the season, Irving exercised his $36.9 million player option to return to Brooklyn for the 2022-23 campaign. However, Durant requested a trade three days afterward, leading to much uncertainty about the future of the franchise.

Eventually, KD rescinded that request. However, Irving was once again sidelined during the regular season after the Nets suspended him eight games for his promotion of an antisemitic movie on social media and his refusal to publicly apologize for the act or unequivocally denounce antisemitism. He returned on Sunday, Nov. 20, versus the Memphis Grizzlies.

Irving eventually returned to his dominant form. He guided the Nets offense when Durant got sidelined with an isolated MCL sprain in his right knee beginning Jan. 12 against the Boston Celtics. Irving averaged 30.3 points and 6.9 assists per game in 10 contests with Durant out.

On Feb. 3, Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic broke news that Irving requested a trade and explained why.

In short, Irving's camp had issues with "stipulations" the Nets wanted in Irving's contract during long-term extension negotiations, and there were also "principal differences that Irving had with the organization."

Teams reportedly lined up with interest in Irving. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski listed the Mavericks, Lakers, Suns, and L.A. Clippers specifically but noted that there were others as well. He also said the Nets were "determined" to make a deal.

Ultimately, Irving's Nets tenure is now over as he finds himself on the Mavericks moving forward.

There's an opening in the Dallas backcourt alongside Luka Dončić after guard Jalen Brunson left for the New York Knicks on a four-year, $104 million contract.

Dončić is in sore need of a running mate who can take some of the scoring and ball-handling burdens off his shoulders. As of now, the Mavs' inability to provide consistent offensive help around Dončić on a nightly basis has led to a disappointing 28-26 campaign, good for sixth in the Western Conference.

Enter Irving, who joins a Mavs team that made the Western Conference Finals one year ago and has a lot of work to do to get that far again.

On paper, Irving should be a huge help for this team, and the offense is destined to improve with him aboard.

The Western Conference should be a gauntlet once again, but the Mavs are well-positioned to fight for an NBA Finals appearance now.