Kyrie Irving Free Agency: 76ers Sign-&-Trade More Likely Than Lakers?
For an eight-time All-Star and NBA champion, Dallas Mavericks point guard Kyrie Irving has garnered a myriad of negative attention over the last handful of years.
Irving has made his rounds with the media countless times, declaring that Earth flat, sitting out for a majority of Nets home games over a COVID-19 vaccine dispute and even being cut by Nike over an anti-semitic film he seemingly promoted on Instagram.
Despite those distracting off-court affairs from his past, his positive presence on the court is unquestionable, and aside from an unfortunate plantar fasciitis injury, there were no issues whatsoever with Irving during his 20 games with the Mavs this year.
His ball-handing skills are next level, and he is a proven scorer who can come through in the clutch for a team needing a boost on offense.
His fit beside Mavs leading man Luka Doncic, however? By the offensive numbers, it worked tremendously, but in the win-loss column, it was a different story.
The pair of All-Stars played just 16 games together in the back half of the season, combining for a disappointing 5-11 record and missing the playoffs entirely after having been in contention in the West prior to Irving's arrival. All of that despite the duo having an elite two-man offensive rating of 119.2 when on the court together.
Dallas' complete collapse wasn't Irving's fault entirely, however, nor was it Luka's. Injuries plagued both stars, and a lack of chemistry that subsequently followed a lack of playing time kept the Mavs from truly breaking through the West. The Mavs being 25th in the league in defensive rating — even before the Irving trade — didn’t help matters either.
Both Irving and Doncic served as leaders — "setting the tone" for the team, as coach Jason Kidd said late in the season — which was especially echoed of the Dallas newcomer by his teammates.
"He's very experienced, very calm," Mavs power forward Maxi Kleber said of Irving. "He knows how to talk to people ... always [has] positive spirits, uplifting words and all of that. I'm very appreciative to be able to play with him."
While Kyrie may feel at home in Dallas, having bounced around NBA teams more than a few times in his career, his future with the Mavs remains undetermined, especially after their downward spiral revealed that something wasn't quite clicking.
So, where could Irving land in the event that moving on proves to be his best option?
Numerous reports have suggested that Irving reuniting with ex-teammate LeBron James is still a possibility, though the likelihood of that happening continues to decrease with each passing day. This leaves room for other teams to try their hand at landing the star point guard.
The Philadelphia 76ers are one of those teams — certainly providing a much more realistic landing spot for the point guard. That doesn't go without concerns, though, as it might take them quite a bit to convince Dallas to give up a player it spent a pretty penny for just a few months ago.
But how much would it take, or more specifically, who would it take? Here's how a potential trade could look:
PHI receives: Kyrie Irving
DAL receives: Tyrese Maxey, Tobias Harris, PHI 2029 first-round pick
At first glance, the deal isn't totally outlandish and seems to be doable by both parties.
Irving is a superstar-level starter for any team in the league. Sure, other teams may have their starting point guard, but the former NBA champion would still find his place in the rotation, providing both veteran locker-room leadership and instant offense.
Philadelphia presents a unique case as well. After six straight years of early playoff exits, it finds itself stuck in limbo: too good for a lottery-caliber pick, but not good enough to break through the East.
Things could worsen if superstar shooting guard James Harden finds his way back to Houston, which is very much a possibility. The Sixers would be without one of their co-stars, still needing to win in order to salvage what is left of "The Process" era, piloted by reigning MVP Joel Embiid.
Irving would make a strong replacement for Harden, especially considering the similar level of scoring ability he brings, though adding him wouldn't come cheap for Philadelphia.
Per the NBA's Stepien Rule, no team can be without a first-round pick for back-to-back years. As part of the trade with Brooklyn that initially made Harden a 76er, Philadelphia gave up its 2023 and 2027 first-rounders, but is also without its 2025 first after using it in the Al Horford-Danny Green trade two years ago.
That leaves the 76ers' 2029 first-round pick, which we believe would need to be included to sway the Mavs into helping Philly acquire their co-star. But that's just step one. Step two is dealing players.
It seems the most likely way that Irving leaves Dallas is by means of a sign-and-trade. Unless Irving is willing to sign with a bottom-dwelling team, that’s the only way he can realistically join a contender. In that scenario, the Mavs would put Irving under contract and ship him off to his next destination if the two parties can't connect on a deal of their own.
The deal in question? Either a four-year, $220.6 million supermax elsewhere, or in this case, a potential five-year, $272 million over five years with Dallas. If Irving does indeed earn the latter contract, however, it puts any potential suitor on the hook for quite some time. That’s a lot of money to commit to a 31-year-old guard with a history of spotty availability.
Philadelphia doesn't have a ton of cap room to work with, but including both Harris and Maxey would put the outgoing salaries on par with the incoming first-year amount that Irving would make — sitting around the $46 million range — which would create a realistic scenario for both squads.
With that being said, the deal works monetarily, but talent-wise, the Mavs would be the beneficiaries of a still-young Maxey with a lot of room to develop alongside Doncic. It would also be a homecoming for Maxey, who is a Dallas native.
Last season, he had his most productive year yet, averaging 20.8 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists — outdoing his previous year's stats that put him in contention for the league's most improved player.
Philadelphia seems to love the 22-year-old as well, who has already been praised by his new head coach ahead of his fourth NBA season.
"He's got a tremendous chance to improve and take a step forward [next year]," 76ers newly-hired coach Nick Nurse said. "And from all indications, he's really hungry to do so."
Dallas could become the place for him to continue improving, where he would also be joined by Harris — a seasoned player who could very well benefit from a change of scenery.
The 16-year veteran is on the opposite end of the spectrum that Maxey is moving on, posting his least efficient season in Philadelphia. Though he was a double-digit scorer most games, he averaged just 14.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.5 assists.
If Harris does indeed benefit from his new team, he and Maxey combined would allow Doncic more freedom on offense, where many of the fit issues that still need to be worked out between he and Irving arose from. This could spark a strong turnaround for Dallas, which would gain two new role players.
All in all, if Dallas and Philadelphia were to scratch a deal, there would be positives for both sides.
The Mavs would get a chance to develop a young guard, while fostering a career revitalization for Harris, and the 76ers would get themselves a bona fide scorer who could stand beside Embiid as they continue their journey to the Eastern Conference Finals and beyond.
Either way, with Irving’s return to Dallas not being a sure thing, the deal is certainly something for both him, the Mavs and the 76ers to at least look into. It could be a difference maker if Irving and Dallas don't come together on a new deal this offseason.
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