The Dallas Mavericks have decided to try again with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.
The NBA team has agreed to re-sign Irving as a free agent and pair him with Doncic for another run at a league championship. The superstars were together for 20 games last season, but the Mavericks failed to make the playoffs, going 8-12 with Irving on the court.
According to multiple reports, Irving agreed to a three-year deal worth $126 million.
The 31-year-old All-Star guard played in 60 games last season with the Brooklyn Nets and Mavericks, averaging 27.1 points and 5.5 assists per game.
“I think Luka and Kai work together,” Mavs General Manager Nico Harrison said in April, Sports Illustrated reported. “When we have that talented of a player — that talented of two players — I think they work together. I really think it’s the players around them … kind of knowing their role with having those two guys out on the floor at the same time. I think that’s the thing that we need to work on.”
The Mavericks traded starters Dorian Finney-Smith and Spencer Dinwiddie, an unprotected 2029 first-round draft pick, and two second-round picks for Irving.
Irving’s future was up in the air when he arrived in Dallas from Brooklyn.
“I’ve dealt with it before, and it’s very emotionally draining to ask questions about what’s the long term,” Irving said in February, per NBC 5. “What the future holds is really only going to be dictated on what I do right now, and how I prepare for those next steps, and that’s being the best teammate that I can in that locker room and a great leader out here, I think within the Dallas community. … So we’re just putting that to bed and just focus on what we have ahead as a team.”
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NBA NOTES
— The Mavericks also signed free-agent guard Seth Curry, brother of Golden State Warriors superstar Steph Curry, to a two-year deal, ESPN reported.
— The Houston Rockets made a splash by acquiring Toronto Raptors guard Fred VanVleet in a three-year, $130 million deal. VanVleet’s contract is the largest ever for an undrafted player, the Houston Chronicle reported.
— Forward Draymond Green stayed with the Warriors in a four-year, $100 million deal, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
— Former Texas Christian University star Desmond Bane became one of the NBA’s wealthiest players. The Memphis Grizzlies kept the guard with a five-year, $207 million contract, the largest deal in team history, the Daily Memphian reported. The 6-foot-5-inch Bane, drafted No.30 overall in 2020, is part of the Big Three in Memphis, which also includes Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr.
— The Grizzlies also signed veteran guard Derrick Rose, the No.1 overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft and 2011 NBA MVP, according to the Daily Memphian. The 34-year-old Rose played college basketball for the University of Memphis.
— The Miami Heat’s Max Strus is going to the Cleveland Cavaliers, agreeing to a four-year, $63 million sign-and-trade arrangement involving the San Antonio Spurs, the Miami Herald reported. The Heat will receive a second-round draft pick. The Spurs picked up Cedi Osman and Lamar Stevens.
— The Los Angeles Lakers picked up Heat point guard Gabe Vincent and re-signed forward Rui Hachimura, the Daily Breeze reported.
— Former Laker Kyle Kuzma stayed with the Washington Wizards for $102 million over four years, The Washington Post reported.
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