The Brooklyn Nets weren’t short of blockbuster bids for Kyrie Irving.
The Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers each proposed loaded trade offers for the wantaway guard before the Nets reportedly struck an agreement with the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday, sources told The Athletic’s Shams Charania.
Phoenix was reportedly ready to trade 12-time All-Star Chris Paul, castaway forward Jae Crowder, and a future first-round pick. Brooklyn may have accepted the offer if it included two more first-rounders, but the Suns never improved their bid and lost interest in trading for Irving, according to Charania.
The Lakers were apparently willing to part with both of their remaining trade-eligible first-round picks in 2027 and 2029 – selections that could prove highly valuable in a post-LeBron James era in Los Angeles. The two picks were offered within the last couple of days alongside Russell Westbrook, but the Nets countered by asking for further pick swaps, plus all of the Lakers’ young players, including Austin Reaves and Max Christie, Charania reports.
Paul, 37, is registering 13.8 points, 8.6 assists, 4.4 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and shooting 38.9% from deep for Phoenix this season, his 18th in the NBA. However, the 11-time All-NBAer has missed significant time this year with heel and hip injuries.
He signed a four-year, partially guaranteed $120-million deal with the Suns in 2021. He’s set to earn at least a partially guaranteed $15.8 million for next season, though that’ll automatically improve to a fully guaranteed $30.8 million if the Suns choose by June 28, according to Spotrac. In 2024-25, his last year under contract, he’s penciled in for a non-guaranteed salary of $30 million.
Dallas’ reported successful offer to Brooklyn for Irving includes Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a 2029 first-round pick, and second-round picks in 2027 and 2029. Irving is expected to undergo a physical Monday in Dallas and could make his Mavericks debut as soon as Wednesday on the road against the Los Angeles Clippers, a source told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
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