Dallas Mavericks Offer Up Hint On What Next Step Is With Kyrie Irving

When the Dallas Mavericks made a blockbuster move to trade for Kyrie Irving ahead of the NBA trade deadline, it was seen as a big swing at trying to win a championship in 2023.

Not only did the move not work out. It failed in spectacular fashion.

Irving and Luka Doncic rarely got on the court together due to injuries. And when they did, the superstar duo looked entirely out of sync. The Mavericks missed the playoffs, even tanking down the stretch to hold onto a draft pick they had a top-10 protection on.

Now Irving, 31, is an unrestricted free agent and could leave Dallas for free having played less than 25 games for the franchise.

But team owner Mark Cuban has remained adamant about his intent to re-sign Irving long-term.

“We want to sign him, and hopefully he wants to come back. I’m not going to handicap anymore. I learned my lesson last year.” Cuban told Jeff “Skin” Wade and Ben Rogers on the “Ben and Skin Show” on “97.1 The Freak.”

Obviously, it makes that Cuban would want a little more from his investment than just 20 games. And it appears that Irving at least has some interest in staying in Dallas, even going so far as to try and recruit LeBron James to join him.

But this is Kyrie Irving we’re talking about. Which means that not even he knows how he’s going to feel on Friday when NBA free agency begins.

The Mavs, however, must be feeling at least a little bit confident.

Dallas announced jersey numbers for its newly signed NBA Draft picks on Monday. First-round pick Dereck Lively II will wear No. 2, which Irving wore this past season.

Irving, meanwhile, is set to wear No. 11 should he return.

That’s still no guarantee. But the fact that Dallas would even announce it at this point seems like a good sign for the Mavericks.