DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks will have a new backcourt star next to Luka Doncic for the rest of the 2022-2023 NBA season.
The Mavs have traded for Brooklyn Nets All-Star guard Kyrie Irving. The Athletic's Shams Charania was the first to report the deal.
The Mavs confirmed the trade Monday, Feb. 6.
Dallas is sending the Nets Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, a 2029 first-round pick and two future second-round picks.
Power forward Markieff Morris is also coming to Dallas in the trade.
TNT reporter Chris Haynes reported that Irving is "ecstatic" about the trade and is "looking forward" to teaming up with Doncic.
In 40 games with Brooklyn this season, Irving has averaged 27.1 points per game, 5.1 rebounds per game and 5.3 assists per game on 48.6 percent shooting from the field.
The Mavs consulted face-to-face with Doncic before agreeing to trade for Irving, according to NBA reporter Marc Stein. Doncic is currently on a five-year, $215 million contract that goes through the 2026-2027 season.
Both the Mavs and Nets are in playoff contention, with their best players (Doncic and Kevin Durant) having what some might say are the best seasons of their careers. Both teams likely felt pressure to make moves that would help improve their chances of making a deep playoff run.
The Nets now get a proven 3-and-D wing (Finney-Smith) and a shot-making guard (Dinwiddie) who used to play for the team. The Mavs get an elite shotmaker and shot-creator to ease some of Doncic's offensive responsibilities.
In February 2022, the Mavs and Finney-Smith agreed on a four-year, $52 million contract extension to keep the forward in Dallas. Finney-Smith had played his first seven seasons in the NBA with Dallas.
Earlier last week, multiple reports stated the Mavs were one of several teams interested in acquiring the 30-year-old guard.
Irving had requested a trade from the Nets ahead of the NBA deadline on Feb. 9. He had an ongoing standoff with the Nets that was centered on his hope for a long-term contract extension from the franchise. The possibility that he would change teams in the summer limited what Brooklyn was able to reasonably get back in a trade.
Extension talks with Irving are expected to be put off until this summer, according to ESPN's Tim MacMahon. Irving is currently eligible for a two-year extension and a four-year deal this summer. MacMahon also pointed out that if the Mavs don't want to keep Irving on the team past this season, the team will have close to max salary cap space in the summer.
After this trade was reported, Haynes also reported that the Phoenix Suns are prepared to pursue Durant if he should become available. As of Sunday afternoon, there's no indication that the Nets are preparing to trade Durant before the Feb. 6 trade deadline.