NBA Roundtable: 5 possible trade destinations for Kyrie Irving

The Brooklyn Nets organization must be allergic to the absence of drama.

Just when everybody thought the buildup to the trade deadline had been lackluster, Kyrie Irving asked the Nets for a trade ahead of Feb. 9. Everything about this Friday was normal. And maybe even subpar until a report from The Athletic’s Shams Charania shook the basketball world.

Twitter, as expected, was exploding. And immediately, the floodgates opened for memes, reactions, and speculations about possible landing spots for Irving. Like any other online platform, our Slack channels got busy following the news. And our writers at Hoops Habit have some ideas for possible trade scenarios surrounding everybody’s favorite (or not) ankle-breaking, clutch shot-hitting flat-earther.

Here are some trade ideas from our staff members.

“The Mavericks could use a talent upgrade” -Cal Durrett

With Kyrie Irving wanting out of Brooklyn several days ahead of the trade deadline, the Dallas Mavericks should be chomping at the bit to land him. While Irving is definitely a wildcard, he is obviously talented, and the Mavericks could use a talent upgrade. After all, their offense relies heavily on superstar Luka Doncic, and he has been putting pressure on his team to get him more help.

Irving fits the bill, and given that he’ll be a free agent after this season, he won’t cost nearly as much as a player of his caliber normally would in a trade. Additionally, the Brooklyn Nets must be at least somewhat relieved that Irving asked for a trade since it takes the blame off them and keeps them from having to commit long-term to such an erratic personality. As far as potential trades go, the Mavericks don’t have a lot of desirable players on desirable contracts, but they could offer Maxi Kleber’s expiring deal, as well as Tim Hardaway Jr. and their 2025 first-round pick. It’s far from a haul, but getting a first for a player that could otherwise leave in less than four months could be enough to convince Brooklyn to pull the trigger on a deal.

“The Lakers seem like the perfect fit” -Dre Gibbs

Irving recently said he would like to stay with the Nets and resign for an extension this offseason. Since he has demanded a trade, it’s safe to assume that the Nets were not on the same page and don’t want to commit to Irving in the long run.

This leaves them in a tricky spot, with the deadline so close and Irving’s contract up at the end of the year. However, the Los Angeles Lakers seem like the perfect fit, they have been trying to move Russell Westbrook since the offseason, and Kyrie and Lebron have a great relationship .

It could be a comfortable situation for Irving to commit to in the long term. The Lakers would certainly have to add one of their first round draft picks for a deal to work which they have been set on not moving. But with Lebron not getting any younger, they might have to risk their future to bring home another championship.

“A new age super trio with Irving, Leonard, and George” -Rowan Kent

With a weaker Western Conference than usual, it’s not unreasonable for even a play-in team to believe that they’re a trade away from making a dark horse run at the NBA Finals. But swapping John Wall, Marcus Morris, and Luke Kennard for Kyrie Irving might be the move to make for the LA Clippers.

Steve Ballmer’s team has never been shy about spending for a chance at contending. With their biggest need being more creativity and oomph at the point of attack on offense, the team could trade some of their assorted role players for the chance to add Irving to their current star duo and form a new age super trio with Irving, Leonard, and George.

The Nets, if they can convince Kevin Durant to stay, would get two positive shooters, some increased depth on team-controlled contracts, and a flier on John Wall as a sparkplug. They’d be locking themselves into a Durant-Simmons team, but they’d also not be locking themselves into the Kyrie Irving tower of terror.

“The possibilities are endless in Phoenix” -Weston Titus

The Phoenix Suns find themselves in an interesting spot. With new owner Mat Ishbia just on the cusp of taking full control right before the deadline, the possibilities are endless in Phoenix. Trading Chris Paul and Jae Crowder for Kyrie Irving and a 2025 Miami 2nd-round pick could provide Ishbia an opportunity for a huge splash with his first move.

Paul and Crowder are almost an exact salary match for Irving, but it may be a situation where both teams see themselves as needing more draft compensation for the deal to happen. Phoenix is giving up a long-term asset in Paul for a possible rental. On the other hand, Brooklyn is trading an all-star player for an aging vet on a large contract. Negotiations could be tricky on this possible deal.

With Chris Paul finally starting to show his age this season, the Suns have to think about some difficult conversations regarding the timeline of their team. Trading for Irving, while bringing questions about long-term viability, would still give the Suns two of the best isolation scorers in the entire league in Irving and Devin Booker.

Brooklyn would bring in a true point guard to help set up Kevin Durant. They would also get frontcourt depth with Crowder, someone who would be more apt than Ben Simmons to play closing minutes in the playoffs.

“Irving’s ability could elevate the Heat” -Zach Ciavolella

Regardless of any and all controversy that has transpired with Irving over the past few years, it’s already clear to see that he has a market. One team to keep an eye on is certainly the underperforming Miami Heat.

Miami’s season can be best described as “kept afloat” as they’ve dealt with injuries (primarily to Jimmy Butler and Victor Oladipo) and individual underperformance (Kyle Lowry certainly comes to mind). Bam Adebayo has played his best basketball yet, keeping the team alive, but still, they’ve certainly labored through the season so far.

Swapping Lowry for a player of Irving’s ability could elevate the Heat back to, or at least thereabouts, contender status. Irving’s ability as a shooter and facilitator would take off some of the offensive pressure that is currently on Butler, Adebayo, and sixth-man Tyler Herro. Meanwhile, Irving’s defensive shortcomings would be masked in large part by Miami’s defense which ranks in the top five in both points allowed (second) and defensive efficiency (fourth).

Kyrie Irving is not for everyone. The ever-existing elephant in the room is all the baggage he takes with him everywhere he goes.

Irving’s commitment has been massive in Brooklyn’s success this season. In the absence of Kevin Durant, Irving held his own as the leader of the Nets. While 5-7 without KD is not necessarily mind-blowing, he was starting to turn question marks into exclamation points. When it appeared as if he was in the best spirits with fans and teammates since landing in Brooklyn, the front office now becomes the catalyst of what could start a domino effect. But maybe it’s best that he leaves while the grass is at its greenest point. Not under the anti-vaccination or antisemitic issues he has dealt with in the past.

How do the Nets respond to this situation as they once again see the familiar face of chaos? If Kyrie leaves, does it mean KD is leaving as well? Is it time for the Nets to start from scratch? Will Irving play against the Wizards tomorrow? Fans and pundits have a hill of questions with regard to this situation.

At the end of the day, he has to do what’s best for him. Say what you will about Irving. But you can’t deny two things; he can ball and he knows how to keep things interesting. You can hate all you want, but at the end of the day, you’re still watching.