Shams: Kyrie Traded to Mavs (Dinwiddie, DFS, #1)

[Goldstar88]

Luka signed off on this, so if Kyrie does screw over the Mavs then Luka has himself to blame too

Maybe Luka is that desperate for a co-star, but idk. Kyrie may have the talent but his ego/toxicity has outweighed that over the last 4-5 years. No one can reign him in. We'll see if Dallas can

Luka “signing off” isn’t the same thing as “Luka told the Mavs to get Kyrie” or “Luka negotiated the terms of the trade”.  If it doesn’t work out, I’m fairly sure he’ll be able to absolve himself of the blame.

Sure, but at the same time he wouldn’t be able to reasonably say, “I want to be traded, never wanted to play with Kyrie” or “You guys didn’t give me any help, trade me.” Cuban seems smart enough to keep his franchise player in the loop and as happy as possible.

[W8ting2McHale]

Half of Texas has an ego as big as Kyrie, and the other half hold the same crazy notions. No more east coast progressives to upset. He’s going to fit right in.

[Sophomore]

Pity the Mavs, and Luka. Wonder if Luka has it in him to demand a trade. He just signed an extension to keep him in Dallas thru 2027.

I think Luka will be fine this season — Kyrie is talented and normally takes at least half a season to alienate his teammates and coaches.  It won’t be enough to get them further in the playoffs, but he won’t be immediately upset.  Long-term he will, either if Kyrie walks and they have no ability to replace him, or if he stays and he’s crazy Kyrie, but Luka will enjoy it for at least the short term.

I’ll take that bet. Barring more additions (and I think they just spent their ammo) that team is going to be murdered in the playoffs this year. Bottom-10 defense.

Depends what you mean by murdered.  I could see them making round 2 or losing in 7 in round 1.  If you mean swept or lose in 5 in round 1, then I’d take that bet, but we might be saying the same thing, perhaps with different prior expectations of the Mavs.

I still think they have a relatively low ceiling in the west.

Agreed. Seeding will tell if they’ve got a chance to get out of round 1. They aren’t getting out of round 2.

I overestimated their D. They are currently 24th in the league and just took a big step backward. They could compete for worst D in the league.

[Celtics2021]

Luka signed off on this, so if Kyrie does screw over the Mavs then Luka has himself to blame too

Maybe Luka is that desperate for a co-star, but idk. Kyrie may have the talent but his ego/toxicity has outweighed that over the last 4-5 years. No one can reign him in. We'll see if Dallas can

Luka “signing off” isn’t the same thing as “Luka told the Mavs to get Kyrie” or “Luka negotiated the terms of the trade”.  If it doesn’t work out, I’m fairly sure he’ll be able to absolve himself of the blame.

Sure, but at the same time he wouldn’t be able to reasonably say, “I want to be traded, never wanted to play with Kyrie” or “You guys didn’t give me any help, trade me.” Cuban seems smart enough to keep his franchise player in the loop and as happy as possible.

For sure.  I just think if it doesn’t work out, Luka isn’t going to blame himself (and fairly so in my opinion, because remaking a team mid-season isn’t his job).

[Celtics2021]

Pity the Mavs, and Luka. Wonder if Luka has it in him to demand a trade. He just signed an extension to keep him in Dallas thru 2027.

I think Luka will be fine this season — Kyrie is talented and normally takes at least half a season to alienate his teammates and coaches.  It won’t be enough to get them further in the playoffs, but he won’t be immediately upset.  Long-term he will, either if Kyrie walks and they have no ability to replace him, or if he stays and he’s crazy Kyrie, but Luka will enjoy it for at least the short term.

I’ll take that bet. Barring more additions (and I think they just spent their ammo) that team is going to be murdered in the playoffs this year. Bottom-10 defense.

Depends what you mean by murdered.  I could see them making round 2 or losing in 7 in round 1.  If you mean swept or lose in 5 in round 1, then I’d take that bet, but we might be saying the same thing, perhaps with different prior expectations of the Mavs.

I still think they have a relatively low ceiling in the west.

Agreed. Seeding will tell if they’ve got a chance to get out of round 1. They aren’t getting out of round 2.

I overestimated their D. They are currently 24th in the league and just took a big step backward. They could compete for worst D in the league.

Sounds like we agree then.  I do think Kyrie will help.  Luka has been completely carrying the Mavs to their barely .500 record.  But they're something like 0-8 without him -- the defense is bad regardless, and they have no offense.  Kyrie's presence may help them win an extra game or two during the regular season, which could be the difference between a 4th seed and the play-in, and thus have an impact on their playoff success because of seeding, but that team isn't constructed to go deep.  If they find themselves in a series with Denver, the Nuggets will average 130 a night.

[Donoghus]

"You gotta surround yourself with people that are going to be honest with you. Kyrie never thinks anything is his fault, and everybody is out to get him."

Charles Barkley breaks down the end of the Kyrie Irving era in Brooklyn & the trade to Dallas with @AdamSchein.

Spot on by the Chuckster.

[Celtics4ever]

I think Dallas lost that deal.   Kyrie is malignant after a while on every team he has been on.   He quits when malcontent.   He is not a good defender and neither is Luke.   Sure they will score a ton of points but we are talking sieve level defense and their going to have to put up with his massive ego.  The moment things get tough, Kyrie will start blaming others, as he went to the LeBron school of being a good team mate.

I don't get the fascination with him after he left here and this is not directed to any poster but rather the media.   Once a guy is off the C's I could care less where they go.

At least we had a hand in breaking his spirit with that blow out.

[Donoghus]

Okay, Lebron.

LeBron James admits he's "disappointed" the Lakers didn't reunite him with his old teammate Kyrie Irving ... saying Monday he thought a trade for the point guard could have given him the chance to win multiple championships in L.A.

LBJ sat down for an interview with ESPN's Michael Wilbon ... and when the topic of Kyrie came up, it wasn't hard to see the King was heartbroken the Lakers got beat out by the Mavericks in a swap for the Nets superstar.

"Definitely disappointed," James said. "I can't sit here and say I'm not disappointed."

James called Irving someone he knows he has great chemistry with -- and someone who "can help you win championships."

The 38-year-old, though, said he's already getting over it ... telling Wilbon, "My focus has shifted back to where it should be, and that's this club now and what we have in the locker room."

As we previously reported, Irving was sent to Dallas on Sunday after he requested a trade last week. As part of the swap, Dallas sent over Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a first-round pick and a handful of second-rounders.

L.A. reportedly tried hard to get into the mix for Irving -- as did the Heat, Suns and Clippers.

James and Irving previously had success in Cleveland, when they went to four consecutive NBA Finals. They won a title in 2016 after overcoming a 3-1 deficit against the Warriors.

After news broke that Irving was on the move from Brooklyn to Dallas, James sent out an eyebrow-raising tweet that said, "Maybe it's me."

It's unclear who or what James was referring to, though the timing was interesting. But, either way, the four-time time NBA champion says he's moving past the disappointment of it all.

"I'm back," he insisted, "locked in on the job at hand."

[Who]

LeBron should leave the Lakers. They are not doing enough to put talent around him.

[SparzWizard]

I think Dallas lost that deal.   Kyrie is malignant after a while on every team he has been on.   He quits when malcontent.   He is not a good defender and neither is Luke.   Sure they will score a ton of points but we are talking sieve level defense and their going to have to put up with his massive ego.  The moment things get tough, Kyrie will start blaming others, as he went to the LeBron school of being a good team mate.

I don't get the fascination with him after he left here and this is not directed to any poster but rather the media.   Once a guy is off the C's I could care less where they go.

At least we had a hand in breaking his spirit with that blow out.

The moment you trade for that malcontent, you've lost the trade.

Oh and, add salt to wound for sending out Dinwiddie, Finney-Smith, a first rounder and multi 2nds.

[SparzWizard]

Here comes LeMe and his exaggerated disappointment in not landing Kyrie. Guess LeGM couldn't come up with a better offer for Sean Marks and Joe Tsai. 

[Goldstar88]

George Karl: The Kyrie trade was about the Mavs working hard to make Luka happy. They also see the League as wide open so it was worth the gamble. At the same time, the Nets are now done this year and Kyrie has no idea who he is. Hope he figures it out! pic.twitter.com/9hcHDJDVQT – via Twitter CoachKarl22

[Roy H.]

George Karl: The Kyrie trade was about the Mavs working hard to make Luka happy. They also see the League as wide open so it was worth the gamble. At the same time, the Nets are now done this year and Kyrie has no idea who he is. Hope he figures it out! pic.twitter.com/9hcHDJDVQT – via Twitter CoachKarl22

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[CelticSooner]

LeBron is such overbearing wuss. Whining about the Lakers not solving the problem he helped create. Literally campaigning for Kyrie to join him next summer. Yuck

[Ed Monix]