Mavericks’ Reluctance to Trade Kyrie Irving Makes Sense Right Now

The Mavericks made a flurry of transactions this offseason after hiring Masai Ujiri as the new head of basketball operations. He wasted no time shaping the team in his image, adding numerous long, athletic forwards to flank up-and-coming star Cooper Flagg. Ujiri also moved on from Jason Kidd as head coach and hired Dusty May away from Michigan to oversee the development of a young team in the coming seasons.

Ujiri’s most interesting move is the one he didn’t make, however: keeping Kyrie Irving in Dallas despite plenty of reported trade interest from contending teams.

Irving, 34, didn’t play a game last season as he recovered from a torn ACL suffered in March 2025. But he still popped up in trade rumors this summer, and did so again on Monday night in a new report from insider Marc Stein.

“The Mavericks, as we've been writing since mid-June, have consistently swatted away trade interest this offseason in nine-times-an-All-Star guard Kyrie Irving,” Stein reported. “Rival teams, however, continue to wonder aloud about how firmly Dallas will stick to that stance once the season begins and the next in-season trade deadline on Feb. 11 gradually approaches.”

Keeping Irving does seem at odds with the team’s long-term goals. Flagg is 15 years younger than Irving. Dallas likely won’t seriously contend with a team built around Flagg until Irving is nearly 40. Between that and his ball-dominant nature it seems like the Mavs would be much better off flipping Irving for assets to fully clear the way for the development of their long-term core players.

However, it makes sense to keep Irving in the fold once you dig a little deeper. How long that remains the case is entirely tied to Flagg’s development, though.

Keeping Kyrie Irving is the right move for the Mavericks right now

We don’t know what offers the Mavs had on the table but barring an unlikely Godfather offer for an aging point guard, Irving has more value to Dallas as a member of the roster than a trade chip.

Presuming the superstar guard can come back and produce at roughly the same level as he did pre-injury (Irving averaged 24.7 points per game on near-50/40/90 shooting splits prior to tearing his ACL), he figures to be a great fit offensively next to Flagg. The No. 1 pick in the 2025 draft enjoyed a stellar rookie season for Dallas but clearly took on more than he was capable of as a ballhandler to start his career. That was Kidd’s entire plan—throw the uber-talented prospect into the deep end and let him figure out how to swim. There are certainly great dividends to be paid by doing so, as seen by Kidd doing the same with Giannis Antetokounmpo and turning the Greek Freak into one of the NBA’s greatest point forwards.

But it did make life undeniably difficult for Flagg. He had to operate in a cramped floor with the defense’s entire attention on him while being asked to playmake at a level he’d never experienced. He averaged 21 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists anyway, which speaks to his enormous potential.

It is tantalizing, though, to imagine what Flagg might do if there was another genuine star on the floor—and it seems the Mavericks are thinking the same. Flagg went through a trial by fire last year and succeeded. The franchise already knows he can thrive under less-than-ideal circumstances. The question then becomes how much better he can be on a more talented roster, an environment that more closely resembles what the Mavericks want to put around Flagg in the coming years.

The best and only way to create that environment this season is to keep Irving around. How Flagg performs with a star teammate and what his game looks like when paired with a star guard, in particular, are extremely valuable data points for Dallas. It will inform how best to build the roster around Flagg and what kind of star the team should look for on the trade market or in the draft. The front office is capable of figuring that out in theory on their own but this will put things into practice in a way not often afforded to young prospects who join bad teams.

Flagg appears to be talented enough that he’ll make an impact on the game no matter what. Therefore, it doesn’t feel like there’s any real risk that keeping Irving will stunt his development. Which makes it a win-win for the Mavs.

Flagg coming along quicker than expected could change that

Cooper Flag — What if Flagg is ready to make the leap? | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

However! If Flagg proves ready to be a top-tier superstar earlier than expected, the Mavs have to consider an Irving trade.

Seeing how Flagg operates next to an elite backcourt scorer will be invaluable no matter what. But if the deadline rolls around and it’s clear Flagg is rapidly progressing on his star trajectory regardless of whether Irving is on the floor to help him ... why not flip Irving? While all the above benefits of keeping him around remain true, it is also a fact that he won’t be helping the Mavs compete for a title when Flagg is ready to do so in three or so years. But the assets offered for Irving—whether it’s draft picks, a fellow young player to act as Flagg’s sidekick or a group of role players who can be flipped for more assets—can absolutely be part of that long-term vision.

It’s an especially tempting proposition because the Mavericks aren’t going to compete this year, either. Even if Flagg makes the leap from exciting young talent to All-Star and Irving comes back the exact same guy and every single other thing breaks right, Dallas doesn’t have the juice to hang with the monsters that litter the West contention landscape. Which doesn’t mean there’s no value in going for it anyway. Putting as competitive of a team as possible around Flagg no matter what will pay its own dividends, particularly if it leads to his first taste of playoff action. But is it worth passing on the chance to cash in on Irving, especially given he can walk for nothing if he turns down his player option next summer?

There are a lot of factors that will go into the possibility of an Irving trade, from his contract plans all the way down to the strength of his relationship with Flagg and May. But Ujiri earned a reputation at his last stop in Toronto for waiting too long to move his obvious trade candidates in pursuit of the perfect deal. He shouldn’t do that this time. If it becomes clear Irving’s presence only helps to an extent when it comes to Flagg, maximizing the possible return becomes the No. 1 goal.

It all comes down to Flagg. If he’s ready to make the leap something near true superstardom ahead of schedule, the Mavericks’ focus shifts to putting the best team around him in a few years when he fully ascends to the upper ranks of NBA stars. Which means moving Irving sooner rather than later.

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