The Dallas Mavericks had to leave the Crypto.com Arena with a 99-107 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers last night. It was a very newsworthy matchup as it marked the first game Luka Doncic played against the Mavericks after they traded him away earlier this month.
It marked the first meeting between Doncic and former teammate Kyrie Irving. They played together for two years and built a strong bond over their only full season together which ended with an NBA Finals appearance. Irving spoke about his relationship with Luka after the game in his post-game press conference.
“It was a lot of fun. We went to Madrid, we started preseason in Abu Dhabi. When you’re on the road and you get to know someone, their family, introducing everybody to your friends. Madrid was very special because that’s where he played and I got to meet his friends and his support system out there.”
“I think that carried over into the season and he was in great spirits coming into last season. It’s easy to complement him while he’s having an MVP-caliber season. He carried us a lot of the way when I was injured or hurt. He carried the brunt of the responsibility. For me, there was respect there before we played together.”
“He is an innocent kid who, same time, is just ultra-talented. The whole world is in front of him. You want to protect people like that, too, because I feel like sometimes people come at him crazy, which is unnecessary. He responds in his own way, but he’s not from America. He’s not used to the culture here. At times, especially when the narratives start spinning.”
“So my goal was just to protect him, man. That’s why it goes deeper than basketball. This is one of those lifetime things for me and I think he feels the same way.”
Kyrie Irving comments on his relationship with Luka Doncic: “(Doncic) is an innocent kid, same time, just ultra-talented. Whole word is in front of him. You want to protect people like that, too, because I feel like sometimes people come at him crazy, which is unnecessary… So my… pic.twitter.com/MJppG85dqS
— Joey Mistretta (@JoeyMistretta_) February 26, 2025
The matchup between Doncic and Irving delivered.
Kyrie put up a game-high 35 points (12-27 FG) with seven rebounds, four assists, three steals, and two blocks. It wasn’t enough to beat the Lakers but it was a better scoring performance than Doncic, who put up 19 points (6-17 FG), 15 rebounds, 12 assists, three steals, and two blocks.
Doncic became only the third player in NBA history to notch a triple-double against all 30 NBA teams with his feat tonight, joining Lakers teammate LeBron James, and even Russell Westbrook on that list. Irving didn’t make any unique history but did go down fighting hard on an undermanned Mavericks squad, which he’s carrying right now.
Kyrie has averaged 28.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 4.1 assists since Doncic was traded, averaging 39.5 minutes per game. Given he was playing through a back injury in January and hasn’t missed many games since then, some fans are concerned about the load Irving is carrying right now.
Kyrie likely doesn’t mind proving his value to the franchise ahead of his potential 2025 free agency, where he has a $43.9 million player option.
If he can keep the Mavs afloat with the team’s injuries and take them to the Playoffs, it seems he’ll be the biggest beneficiary of the Doncic trade.
The Mavericks have to retain him at all costs as he’s their only perimeter creator now that Luka is gone. Irving is proving to them on the court that he’s worth every cent, so it’ll be interesting to see how the injury-riddled Mavs finish this season now.
Thank you for being a valued reader of Fadeaway World. If you liked this article, please consider following us on Google News. We really appreciate your support.
