3 Instant Reactions to Kyrie Irving's Reported 3-Year, $126M Contract with Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks have re-signed guard Kyrie Irving to a three-year, $126 million contract with a player option on the third season, per Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic.
Here's a quick look at three reactions following the move.
1. Mavs Take Massive Gamble Keeping Kyrie
The early returns on the Irving-Luka Doncic pairing were not good after the Mavs acquired Irving from the Brooklyn Nets in February. The team went just 5-11 in 16 games where the two took the court together.
Granted, it's unfair to judge the pairing based on a small sample size, let alone one where the two were mashed together midseason without any offseason time to gel.
Still, the Mavericks are committing nine figures to Irving in hopes that things will turn around in 2023-24. It's a lot of money for a player who may have not been commanding that much elsewhere, as ex-Phoenix Suns general manager Ryan McDonough noted:
Time will tell if this experiment works out, but if not, then it'll be very difficult for Dallas to pivot off that move and remain contenders.
2. Dallas Had Limited Options after Nets Trade
The Mavs would have potentially given up two veterans (Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith) and three draft picks (including a 2029 first-rounder) for two months of Irving had they not re-signed him.
Obviously, that would have been an unideal scenario, so the Mavs were more or less pot-committed to get something done.
That being said, it appears from both sides that Irving and the Mavs were in this for the long haul.
"It's been a scramble since I've been here. I'm trying to fill in roles that were filled in from other people," Irving told reporters in late March.
"I think the realistic view when I came here is that this was going to be a growing process. This was for the long term," Irving said. "This was for something that was bigger than ourselves. We can't just be a championship team overnight. I've wrapped my head around that aspect of it. I'm at peace with it."
Mavs governor Mark Cuban made it clear days later that the team wanted to retain him:
That has happened as Irving finds a new home in Dallas for the next few years.
3. Lot of Work Left to Do
The Mavericks' rebounding and defensive deficiencies were big reasons why the team failed to make the play-in tournament, so Dallas needs to do more work on those fronts. The good news is that Irving's contract does give the team enough flexibility to add more pieces in free agency.
Dallas was second-last in rebounding rate and 24th in defensive efficiency last year. The Mavs began addressing those needs in the draft by taking Duke big man Derek Lively II and Marquette forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper.
As far as what the Mavs can do in free agency, Boston Celtics forward Grant Williams has been linked to the team, per Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. Free agent big man Mason Plumlee, who averaged a career-high 8.9 rebounds per game last year, could also be a good fit.
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