Kyrie Irving, the controversial NBA player, has reportedly been traded to the Dallas Mavericks, the team owned by billionaire Mark Cuban. The trade will involve Irving being sent to Dallas in exchange for Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a 2029 first-round draft pick, a 2027 second-round pick, a 2029 second-round pick, and Markieff Morris. The trade will be finalized after the teams have a call with the NBA.
Kyrie Irving had previously requested to be traded from the Nets, and his career with the team has been turbulent. Last year he was benched for eight games after he posted antisemitic content on social media, and was denied a $100 million contract extension for not getting vaccinated for Covid-19. Nike also cut ties with him in December.
Despite his tumultuous time with the Nets, Irving is still one of the top scorers in the league and was recently selected as a starting NBA All Star. He is expected to make $36.9 million during the 2022-2023 season.
Irving will join fellow All Star Luka Dončić on the Mavericks. Cuban’s net worth is estimated at $4.6 billion, and the Mavericks are the eighth-most valuable NBA team at $3.3 billion.