Kyrie Irving will be back in Dallas for at least two more seasons, as the star guard who the Mavs acquired in a trade at the deadline agreed to a 3-year, $126 million contract with a third-year player option as free agency opened on Friday.
For the Mavs, bringing Irving back was their top priority after trading Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, and a first round pick for him. After doing some wheeling and dealing during the Draft, the Mavs also have the mid-level at their disposal to try and make another addition, but Irving had to be back because they simply didn’t have any other alternatives to replace him without taking a step back. Still, not everyone was a fan of the deal they handed out, because it was a lot of money that gives Irving a lot of power, which doesn’t always work out for teams.
On NBA TV’s free agency coverage, former Suns general manager Ryan McDonough — who know a thing or two about making a deal you later regret — torched the Mavs for giving Irving this deal when they were seemingly bidding against themselves.
"I have no idea who the Mavs were bidding against."
Ryan McDonough reacts to the Mavs' reported 3-year, $126M deal with Kyrie Irving pic.twitter.com/n1yfki5isw
— NBA TV (@NBATV) June 30, 2023
“I think they are crazy. Kyrie Irving has been unhappy over the last six years on a winning Cleveland Cavaliers team, a winning Boston Celtics team, and a Brooklyn Nets superteam that he chose to go four years ago today as a free agent with Kevin Durant. So why would you give him this kind of money? Why would you give him a player option in the third year? $42 million a year is insane for Kyrie Irving combined with a player option. Who were they bidding against?”
McDonough goes on to note the only possible threat for Kyrie was Houston, which is still sitting there waiting on Fred VanVleet’s decision and would have $64 million to spend if he chooses to stay in Toronto. There’s definitely truth to what McDonough is saying, as Kyrie’s market was a mid-level somewhere or Houston and that’s it. However, Dallas’ issue was less the free agency negotiation and more the situation they put themselves in by trading for Irving, and giving up so much that they had no choice but to give him the deal he wanted.
While Irving didn’t get the four-year max he absolutely wanted, a three-year deal with a player option at that money is about as good as he could’ve hoped for. It’s a credit to him and his agent for making it happen, but McDonough notes what many around the league will think, which is the Mavs overpaid simply because they allowed themselves to enter this summer with no leverage after making the trade.
