Avoid Mavericks Futures After Kyrie Irving Trade

Dallas' Title Chances with Kyrie Irving

Do you remember when Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant teamed up in Brooklyn and were expected to bring the city an NBA championship? Sure you do, it was just a few short years ago. Do you remember when they won the title? No? Oh right, that's because it never happened.

On Sunday afternoon, just days after Irving requested a trade from the Nets, Brooklyn sent the All-Star to the Dallas Mavericks. In return, they received Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a first-round pick and two second-round picks. The Nets also sent Markieff Morris to Dallas in the trade. Within hours, the Mavericks championship title odds were nearly sliced in half, moving from +2000 to +1200 on PointsBet.

Mavs star Luka Doncic took the organization to the Western Conference finals last season with Jalen Brunson as the team's No. 2 option. With Irving next to Doncic, Dallas should be able to make it all the way to the NBA finals, right?

Not so fast.

Here are three reasons why you shouldn't rush to bet the Mavericks to win the NBA Finals.

1. Kyrie Is Still Kyrie

In less than three seasons, Irving and Kevin Durant played just 74 games together. Add their third counterpart, James Harden, into the mix, and the trio only played 16 total games together over that same span. Some of that had to do with injuries and Harden getting traded last season, but much of that had to do with Irving's off-court antics. He wasn't able to play in home games in 2021-2022 because he refused to get the Covid vaccine. He was suspended for a significant time earlier this season because of a Twitter post that promoted an antisemetic film. If we look back even further in his career, he asked out of Cleveland and Boston. It seems like wherever Irving goes, issues follow. There's no reason to believe problems aren't going to follow him to Dallas and that isn't a recipe for success when it comes to winning a championship.

2. Mavs Defense Takes a Hit

Doncic isn't a great defender. That's no secret. Teams target him in the pick-and-roll all the time. The same can be said for Irving. When those two have to defend dynamic backcourts, things could get ugly. Add Christian Wood into the mix and all of a sudden three of Dallas' starters are liabilities on the defensive end. Finney-Smith hasn't been great on the defensive side of the ball this year, but throughout his career, he's been a very capable defender. The Mavs are going to have to rely heavily on slowing the pace down even more and their offensive efficiency in order to overcome their poor defense.

3. Do Luka and Kyrie Fit Together?

It remains to be seen how Doncic and Irving fit together on the court. I'm not saying they're not going to, but Doncic has been the sole No. 1 option in Dallas for his entire career. The Mavs tried to bring Kristaps Porzingis in to play alongside Doncic and give him some relief, but the two of them never quite gelled on the court and they didn't get along off the court either. Irving will undoubtedly bring an offensive presence that will force teams to pick and choose which star player they want to double each night, but I'm not confident Irving is going to be okay being the No. 2 option behind Doncic.

I'm not saying this trade isn't going to be successful or pay off in a positive manner for the Mavs, there are just so many unknowns at the moment. Save your money for now and don't rush to place any futures on Dallas quite yet.

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