The Dallas Mavericks have a massive point guard-sized hole in their lineup that the team looks adamant not to replace. After watching Jalen Brunson walk to the New York Knicks for nothing, the Mavericks decided that they didn’t need another ball-handler on the court with Luka Doncic and Spencer Dinwiddie.
The Mavs have acquired only big-men this summer in JaVale McGee and Christian Wood, addressing a major deficit from last year’s team in terms of reliable big-man play. No guard has come in yet to replace Brunson, but the Mavericks have been linked for a trade for Kyrie Irving from Brooklyn.
The Irving trade is an afterthought for many because they take Kyrie going to the Lakers for granted. From the latest report by Callie Caplan of Dallas News, it seems confirmed that the Mavericks are out of the Kyrie race due to them looking at it as a bad organizational fit alongside Jason Kidd.
Mavs have very little interest in a Kyrie trade. I’ve heard Nets reached out, but for one, Jason Kidd would have to wildly shift his “chemistry and accountability” buzz words.
And that’s before factoring in compensation, fit, etc.
But always nice to see friends being friendly!
— Callie Caplan (@CallieCaplan) July 10, 2022
The Mavs respectfully declining to deal with Brooklyn on this is going to puzzle many fans that expect them to take care of the Brunson replacement. After missing out on Goran Dragic, the lack of bench guard play has been severely bemoaned by Mavs fans.
The Mavericks’ philosophy under their new coaching staff is to play large lineups where the shortest player is not shorter than 6’5″. This is going to work well with their existing roster but won’t work with Irving on the team due to his size. He will be a tremendous offensive asset next to Luka, but the gambles are way too many for the Mavs to take that risk.
This is probably good news for Kyrie, as the Nets won’t deal him to a place he doesn’t like or plan for. Irving will push to be a Laker by the end of the week, and hopefully, the news can be announced soon.
