Report: Brooklyn Nets trade Kyrie Irving to Dallas Mavericks
The Kyrie Irving era in Brooklyn is over.
The Nets traded the star guard to the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday afternoon, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Brooklyn will receive power forward Dorian Finney-Smith, former Net guard Spencer Dinwiddie, a 2029 first-round pick and two second-round picks. The Mavericks also acquire Markieff Morris in the deal.
The trade comes just two days after Irving requested to be dealt ahead of the NBA’s Thursday trade deadline, ending his tumultuous four-season stay in Brooklyn.
Irving is “ecstatic” about the trade, according to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report and TNT.
Irving, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2011 draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers, joined the Nets in July of 2019 after spending two seasons with the Boston Celtics. He and Kevin Durant stunned the league at the time by agreeing to deals with the Nets on the first day of free agency.
But Irving played in just 143 games for the Nets over four seasons — missing time due to injury, a refusal to get the COVID-19 vaccine amid New York City’s vaccination mandate and a suspension earlier this season after posting a link on social media to an antisemitic film.
The team – which also acquired James Harden, only to trade him to the Philadelphia 76ers for Ben Simmons – won just one postseason series during Irving’s time with the team.
The 30-year-old Irving, who was voted an Eastern Conference All-Star starter, is averaging 27.1 points, 5.3 assists and 5.1 rebounds this season. He is making $36.9 million after opting into the final year of his deal during the offseason but was unable to reach an extension with Brooklyn earlier this week, leading to his trade request.
He now heads to his fourth NBA team, heading to a 28-26 Mavericks team where he’ll join forces with another superstar teammate in Luka Doncic.
His former star teammate, Durant, is yet to comment publicly since Irving’s trade request.
