Grading the Kyrie Irving blockbuster trade

Dallas Mavericks trade grade: B-

This sounds harsh for a team that made a swing for the fence as they look to pair their franchise player with a legitimate co-star. Kyrie Irving is the clear star of the deal, and Markieff Morris is a legitimate veteran presence whose jump shot has seemingly not yet left him.

Irving will almost certainly continue his impressive, All-Star caliber season alongside his new fellow superstar, Luka Doncic, and will lighten the road for the MVP candidate, especially down the stretch of the season. The concern with this deal is not with what the Mavericks traded for but rather what they traded away.

Kyrie Irving is unquestionably a major offensive upgrade, but Dallas traded away arguably their best defender along with a guard who, while not a strong defender, is more adept on that end than Irving has proven to be. Defense will be a real issue for the Mavericks heading into the playoffs barring another move or two being made prior to then.

This is not a “bad” trade as the Mavericks clearly ended up with the best player in the deal, and they get bonus points for pleasing their franchise player who had the potential to soon become a flight risk. However, an average defense has gotten significantly worse, Irving brings more than his fair share of baggage to the city of Dallas, and there is not yet a guarantee that he will remain with the team past this season.