Kyrie Irving is an undeniable talent that the NBA is proud to call its own. For over a decade, the former champion has been posing a major threat to his opponents. He is also very entertaining on the court as well. This is why fans tune into their local streaming networks and fill out the seats in the arena for him. Irving has established himself as a unique individual. Having said all this, there are still a few things people haven’t liked about him.
The former Rookie of the Year has had a very controversial past. Especially during his tenure with the Brooklyn Nets, Kyrie was linked to numerous controversies. Unfortunately, his past ended up staying with him and fans began to blame him for the Dallas Mavericks downfall last season. However, Mark Cuban, the owner of the Mavericks stated that Irving was never a problem. And he apparently did not have any disagreements with Luka Doncic.
Kyrie Irving recently mentioned that he intends to retire as a Maverick after they signed him to a three-year $120 million deal with them. During a recent interview on the Lock On Mavericks Podcast, he said, “I feel like I’m one of the guys that guards [Luka Doncic] the best. That’s probably why I’m on this team.” He boldly claimed that the Mavericks only signed him because he’s a threat to Doncic as an opponent.
Kyrie Irving hints that Dirk Nowitzki had the easiest job being a fourth-man
Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic will enter the next season with a chip on their shoulder. The Slovenian guard led the Mavericks to the Western Conference Finals during the 2021-22 season. So, missing out on the most recent playoff series was a huge blow to the gut for Dallas. Especially after they made an upgrade by acquiring Irving. However, the team seems as motivated as can be and Doncic is also coming off an incredible 2023 FIBA World Cup.
Kyrie is making sure that he’s having fun before the 2023-24 season starts. He briefly spoke about joking around with fans and how he’d claim he’s a fourth man on the roster. He said, “But I love messing around with the fans, I love messing around with the basketball community whenever I say I’m a fourth man. Because it’s one of the easiest roles to play.”
Irving added, “All you have to do is rebound, you could trail. You could be loud the whole entire time. You could shoot threes, you can post up… you don’t have to pass if you don’t want to. Like, Dirk [Nowitzki] is a four.” Him mentioning Dirk’s name while calling the fourth-man position the easiest may not age well in the future. Especially since Nowitzki is a major part of the organization’s history. Dirk was responsible for the Mavericks’ success during the 2000s as well as their title reign in 2011.