NBA Free Agency: Kyrie Irving re-signs as Mavericks go all-in on star duo

The Mavericks signed Kyrie Irving to a deal worth $126 million over the next three years, sticking with the Irving-Luka Doncic duo for better or worse.

According to Shams Charania, the Mavericks have signed Kyrie Irving to a $126 million deal over the next three years. The terms of the deal are a bit unexpected with Irving having a player option in the deal as well.

This is an average annual value of $42 million for three years. Irving will get more than Khris Middleton on his newly signed contract with the Bucks.

Irving was rumored to take meetings with multiple teams in free agency but it seemed like only the Rockets were taking the meeting seriously. They likely viewed him as a target if they were unable to get Fred VanVleet.

What does this re-signing Kyrie Irving mean for the Mavericks going forward?

The Mavericks were stuck in this situation due to the fact that they ended up trading draft picks for Irving. The negotiation tactics worked for Irving as he was able to get a long-term deal.

He was unable to get a four-year deal but he ended up getting a lot more than he would have gotten with the Nets if he ended up staying with the team. Irving was traded from that squad because a long-term extension could not get done between the two parties.

The Mavericks are tying their Luka Doncic horse to a player who is often involved in controversy, cannot stay healthy, and does not play well on the defensive end. This is in addition to the fact that Doncic does not play well on that end and the Mavs will most likely need to get defense-minded players to surround their two stars in order to win a championship.

The Mavs went into this season with the hope that this would be a “gap year” for the team which would allow them to recoup draft assets in order to find a player to surround Doncic. Instead, they opted to trade for Irving and now they tied their hopes to him going forward.