On Feb. 5, the Brooklyn Nets traded Kyrie Irving, an eight-time All-Star, and Markieff Morris for three future picks and two players from the Dallas Mavericks. 

Irving joined the Brooklyn Nets back in Jun. 30, 2019, forming the Kevin Durant-Kyrie Irving duo. However, following a series of controversies, organizational consequences, and disputes, especially over Irving’s recent antisemitic statements, Irving requested a trade. 

NBA fans and analysts have argued that the trade benefited the Mavericks more than the Nets. Analysts speculate the Nets lost the trade due to the team’s continued focus on training their present lineup rather than acquiring future draft picks. 

“The Nets should have definitely focused on getting more draft picks than role players,” Aaron Kim (11), NBA fan, said. “Building the team around Kevin Durant will not help anymore because the Nets need to first acquire another star to be true competitors for this year’s championship.”

As the trade deadline approached, the Nets chose to acquire two strong role players, Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith,—players who play a supporting role for star players during the game—from the Mavericks along with three future NBA draft picks. 

NBA analysts are praising the Mavericks for this trade. Luka Doncic, the star player on the Mavericks, has been the single reliable star on the team. As a result, despite his continuous MVP-level performance, the Mavericks have seen no greater success than competing within the Western Conference.

With Irving and Doncic sharing the court as teammates, Doncic will have another stable offensive star to rely on. Nevertheless, Doncic and Irving will need to work on how they can play harmoniously, as both have been the primary ball handlers of their team.

“While Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic are both primary ballhandlers, Luka Doncic has shown his ability to play off-ball in Europe,” said Seowoo Choi (9), Luka Doncic fan, said. “When watching clips from the past years in Europe, Doncic showed his off-ball capabilities, stepping down from the role as a primary ball handler.”

The Mavericks have become a championship-caliber team with a strong offensive trio of Christan Wood, Irving, and Doncic.