Kyrie Irving Rumors: Lakers, Mavs, Teams 'Wary' of Long-Term Contract After Trade
All-Star guard Kyrie Irving faces an uncertain future following his reported request to be traded from the Brooklyn Nets.
NBA insider Marc Stein said that teams like the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks, who are believed to be interested in Irving, are "wary" when it comes to committing to him beyond this season because of his "well-chronicled reliability issues over the past half-decade."
Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported Friday that Irving had requested a trade and preferred to be moved prior to the Feb. 9 trade deadline, telling the Nets that he will not re-sign with them during the offseason.
Irving has consistently made headline for reasons other than his basketball performance.
He forced a trade from the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Boston Celtics because of unhappiness playing alongside LeBron James, publicly criticized his younger teammates in Boston before signing with the Nets, refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine and missed many games because of it last season, and was suspended eight games this season for promoting a film that featured antisemitic viewpoints on his social media channels.
From an on-court perspective, the 30-year-old veteran has been as good as ever this season, averaging 27.1 points, 5.3 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 3.3 three-pointers made in 40 games en route to being named an All-Star starter.
Although Irving's production remains high, he has not been able to win the big one again since leaving Cleveland.
As the No. 2 star alongside James with the Cavaliers, Irving went to three consecutive NBA Finals and won a championship, hitting the title-winning shot against the Golden State Warriors.
His personality did not mesh with the likes of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in Boston, however, nor has it worked with Kevin Durant and previously James Harden in Brooklyn.
Any team that potentially acquires Irving has to be careful about not upsetting chemistry.
The Lakers are likely desperate enough to consider it while below .500 and built to win now with LeBron and Anthony Davis leading the way. James and Irving seem to have great respect for each other despite their past differences.
Dallas is fourth in the Western Conference at 28-25, almost entirely thanks to the play of Luka Dončić. The Mavs badly need another star to play alongside him in order to contend for a championship, and Irving will almost certainly be the best option available.
Kyrie is eligible for a four-year, $200 million contract extension at the end of the season, but it remains unclear if any team would be willing to make that commitment.
Irving would have a ton of value to teams as a rental, but it is possible the Nets would rather keep him for the rest of the season than trade him for less than he is worth.
