General Breakdown:
In a shock to the majority of the NBA community, Kyrie Irving requested a trade out of Brooklyn due to a fallout during contract negotiations following a blowout loss to Boston. This morning, Irving was sent to Dallas in a blockbuster trade for Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney Smith and some draft capital which the Nets significantly lack.
In today’s article, I’ll be discussing the fallout of what had the potential to be the best big 3 of all time and where do Brooklyn go from here as well as the future for Dallas and how they can use this trade to build on the reputation as a finals contender.
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THE TRADE
Brooklyn Nets receive
Spencer Dinwiddie
Dorian Finney – Smith
2029 FRP
2x SRP
Overall Grade B +
Dallas Mavericks Recieve
Kyrie Irving
Markieff Morris
Overall Grade A –
THE NETS PERSPECTIVE
The Brooklyn Nets have now somehow failed to make the finals let alone get a ring with arguably the best trio of all time in Harden, Irving and KD.
This big 3 gave Nets fans plenty of stress with all the disputes and injuries they experienced in their short tenure. In the future though for the Nets, Durant is an essential piece to the success of this team. If they can keep him they will be able to maintain their run for a ring in my opinion. The supporting cast in O’Neale, Curry, Thomas, Dinwiddie, Claxton, and Dorian Finney Smith are players who could 100% be involved in a championship contender in this NBA. The issue I have with the trade for the Nets right now is that they could have gotten maybe a little bit more for Irving. If they got Josh Green or a Tim Hardaway Jr in this trade it would really shake things up.
Building on that supporting cast is so important these days. I think Durant can do whatever he wants on the court and with the supporting cast I haven’t ruled the Nets out just yet. Dinwiddie needs to continue his current form for the nets to thrive as well. Cementing a second star-type player is crucial for success and we know the fraud Ben Simmons isn’t going to stop underperforming anytime soon unless a miracle happens. If Ben pulls his head out, the NBA needs to watch out for the nets. Good trade for them and I hope they let Cam Thomas get more minutes now without Irving to see what he can do after dropping 44 points in 29 minutes.
The Dallas Perspective
Luka Doncic has been looking for a second star to support his game for the past 2 seasons now and even though the Mavs signed Christian Wood who in my opinion has been great for them and his per 36min numbers look outstanding, Luka still found himself having to drop 50-60 point games and only win by single digits.
Now that Kyrie Irving is now a Maverick, they have the best backcourt in the NBA. No questions asked. The duo of Luka and Irving is next to unstoppable. It will be so exciting to see them play together and along with Christian Wood this team is now a contender and they probably have the best offence in the NBA.
However, the Mavs are ranked 24th in defence this season and it won’t be getting better with the gain of Irving. That backcourt will be eaten alive against the better teams on the defensive side of the floor and it is a concern however, not as big of a concern as people think. In my opinion, Josh Green is one of if not the most underrated players in the league at the moment. Green averages 8ppg on 55% shooting with 41% from 3 in just 22 minutes a game this season. He fits so well with the gameplan and not to mention his incredible defensive abilities as well. I believe he can start at the 3 in a small ball rotation (assuming Wood starts at the 4 and Powell or Kleber starts at the 5 come playoffs) to support the lack of defence that the Mavs have right now.
This being said I think the Mavs are a Myles Turner or even a Walker Kessler-type player away from a ring at this point but they are now 100% a contender. But come playoffs defence wins games and the Mavs just need 1 or 2 more above average 3 and D-type guys on their roster to solidify them as a top 3-5 team in the league.
So who won in the end? We say both! The Nets got rid of a disease on team morale and they now have a supporting cast to enable Durant to carry them to a playoff run. While the Mavs obviously gain the best backcourt in the league. What do you think? Comment below your thoughts on the trade as a whole and who came off second best!