Mavs hope Irving is the final piece to a championship team
The Brooklyn Nets’ recent teardown of the remainder of their “Big Three” was one of the most disheartening things for a basketball fan to see in recent memory. But you’ll have to excuse the Dallas Mavericks’ faithful if they don’t share that sentiment.
For in getting eight-time All Star point guard Kyrie Irving in a trade deadline deal, the Mavs may have vaulted themselves to the forefront of the playoff conversation in the Western Conference.
In his first four games since joining Dallas on Feb. 6, Irving has been a monster, averaging 28 points per game on 53.3 percent shooting, with seven assists and 1.3 steals. And from three-point range, he’s been blistering, with a 43 percent success rate.
His most impressive performance came against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Feb. 13, when down by 26 he led a furious charge with 26 fourth quarter points only to fall short on the final possession in a 124-121 loss at home.
Though his time in Brooklyn was a mix of at-times brilliant play, controversy and overall weirdness, the Mavericks hope the 30-year-old Australian can put all that behind him and focus on winning. They’re betting he can form a formidable tandem with their homegrown superstar Luka Doncic and lead the team up the West standings and into a top postseason seeding in the season’s final weeks.
Irving and the Mavs can be seen in action Monday, March 13, Full name: Kyrie Andrew Irving Birth date: March 23, 1992 Birthplace: Melbourne, Australia
Height/weight: 6 feet, 2 inches/195 pounds
Teams: Cleveland Cavaliers (2011-17), Boston Celtics (201719), Brooklyn Nets (2019-23), Dallas Mavericks (2023-present) College: Duke
Draft: Selected in the first round (first overall) by the Cavaliers in 2011
Position: Point guard
No.: 2
Honours and achievements: Eight-time NBA All-Star; NBA champion (2016); NBA All-Star Game MVP (2014); NBA Rookie of the Year (2012); NBA All-Rookie First Team (2012); gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics