The Dallas Mavericks head into the 2026-27 NBA season under a new regime. Masai Ujiri has taken over as president of basketball operations after years spent building the Toronto Raptors into a title contender, and Dusty May has replaced Jason Kidd as head coach after winning a national championship at Michigan. With how things have fizzled out since the Luka Doncic trade, Mavs fans are hoping for a quick turnaround.
But with the roster being built primarily around young talent, it's left many wondering what's going to happen with Kyrie Irving. On Monday, ESPN's Tim MacMahon floated the idea that, with Dallas building around reigning Rookie of the Year Cooper Flagg, Irving could be a trade target leading up to this season's NBA trade deadline. "Really, he returns to the role that he had when Luka was in Dallas.
And that is the co-star and the vocal leader of the team, the voice in the locker room, the veteran that all these guys look up to and want to listen to, but I'll tell you the question that's being asked around the league is: for how long?" MacMahon said. "It's not because the Mavericks don't love Kyrie. It's not because Kyrie doesn't love Dallas and hasn't enjoyed his experience there, because he has.
But they're building around a 19-year-old prodigy in Cooper Flagg. So could there come a time when it makes sense for both sides to find a contender for Kyrie to go to? These are the kind of things that people around the league will be monitoring leading up to the trade deadline." More news: Heat Lock Up Rising Guard With Major $60 Million Extension Dallas is set to open training camp in the coming days, ahead of a preseason slate that kicks off Oct. 9 against the Rockets in Macao, China.
It's the first real look at how Ujiri and May plan to build their rotation around Flagg, and how, or if, Irving fits into it. Irving is 34 years old and set to earn around $39.5 million this upcoming season, after which he'll have a $42.4 million player option for the 2027-28 season before his contract expires. That's a lot of money tied up in an aging player, especially one on a team clearly in rebuild mode.
The Mavs won just 26 games last season and enter this year with one of the youngest rosters in the league, alongside an entirely new front office and coaching staff. More news: Steph Curry Makes Feelings Crystal Clear on Warriors Future More news: Jayson Tatum Sets the Record Straight on Relationship With Jaylen Brown Irving is also still working his way back from a torn ACL suffered over a year ago and hasn't played since the 2024-25 season. But when he was on the court, he was still one of the best guards in the game, averaging 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game, while shooting 47.3% from the field and 40.1% from 3-point range.
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