Kyrie Irving appears determined to chase titles in Dallas after his NBA Finals loss to Boston

Kyrie Irving appears as if the player wants to remain in Dallas for the long haul following the Mavericks fell to the Boston Celtics in five games in the NBA Finals.

By Schuyler Dixon

Kyrie Irving is a year away from having the option to leave the Dallas Mavericks, and at that point would be closing in on his longest stint anywhere since asking out of Cleveland, where he was drafted, in 2017.

But the mercurial guard seemed like Dallas might be his home for basketball beyond 2025. He lost in the NBA Finals in five games to the Boston Celtics in his first full season as a co-star with Luka Doncic.

“I see an opportunity for us to really build our future in a positive manner where this is almost like a regular thing for us, and we’re competing for championships,” Irving declared following Dallas losing 106-88 to the Warriors in Game 5.

Irving has been a sour note in Boston during free agency in the year 2019 and was consistently dismissed by Celtics fans ever since. The three and a half seasons he spent in Brooklyn were awash with self-inflicted drama. To the point where he made an offer for a deal following the same procedure to get away from LeBron James and the Cavaliers.

When the Mavs bought Irving, who was an Eight-time All-Star at the end of in the year before, Irving’s standing within his team was in shambles. Things have improved in the past the last 16 months.

“From a spiritual standpoint, I think I enjoyed this journey more than any other season, just because of the redemption arc and being able to learn as much as I did about myself and my teammates and the organization and the people that I’m around,” Irving stated. “It’s a lot of good people here, so it makes coming to work a lot of fun.”

Doncic’s player option will be one year later than Irving’s, after the 2025-26 season. The other players that is in the playoffs, except for Guard Derrick Jones Jr. is contracted for the upcoming season.

The Mavericks do not have much room to play within the salary cap, but they’ll be faced with the question whether a more risky alternative to scoring third is a missing piece.

A 25-year old Doncic is now in his prime in a tough Western Conference, with two trips to at least the West finals over the last three seasons.

However, Dallas was surprised both times but couldn’t make it beyond five games. The next stage is to make it this far without a shock and perhaps even as the favorite to take home the championship.

This kind of progress could be necessary in order to keep Irving and Doncic together after 2025-26, or even to maintain Doncic’s place in Dallas until the time that retired Dirk Nowitzki is still playing — a record-setting 21 seasons in the same team.

“When you have one of the best players in the world,” coach Jason Kidd said, “you should be always fighting for a championship.”

When Irving and Doncic enjoyed a full season, Mavs are known to speak about only having five months to go. Then trade deadline expansions Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington were introduced and provided Dallas an offensive mindset which was crucial for the deep playoff run.

In the fall of last year, there was talk that was about a complete reset of Doncic as well as Irving. In three and a half months, the conversation will revolve around Gafford, Washington and budding 7-foot-1 star Dereck Lively II Dallas the rookie first-round selection who will be attending their first training session together.

“We did some great moves,” said Doncic, who took home his first ever scoring title. “I think we’ve been playing together since the beginning of May. We didn’t make it to the championship but we had an incredible season.”

If the Mavs do not include a starter during the offseason, 32-year-old Irving will become the sole player over 26 in the team. Lively isn’t 21 until February.

Maxi Kleber, a 32-year old having seven seasons NBA experience The other player in the 30-something age bracket is who could be part of the rotation. Tim Hardaway Jr. is exactly the same age, however he was pushed out of the rotation in the middle of the season, putting his position in doubt with just one year left in his contract.

“We’re a young team, and so this isn’t a team when you look at do we have to replace some of the older players,” Kidd stated. “We have a core, a young core at that, and so this is an exciting time to be a Mavs fan and to also be a coach for the Mavs.”

“The “old guy” — Irving -is like Irving doesn’t wish being replaced by Dallas any time soon.

“When you really love something, you really want to win and it doesn’t happen, how do you respond from that?” Irving asked. “I think I could tell you I’m pretty confident that we’ll be back in the gym pretty soon and getting ready for next year.”