Kyrie Irving is back on the floor and looking like the player teams have spent years trying to game-plan for. That alone has put him right back into the league’s trade conversation.
The former Boston Celtics guard is now with the Dallas Mavericks, and after a knee injury wiped out his last season, he has returned to form. Dallas has been solid this year, even if the team may be running a little ahead of schedule. With youngster Cooper Flagg playing as well as he has, the Mavericks could decide they want to push harder, chase playoff reps for Flagg, and go all in.
If that becomes the direction, Irving’s future gets interesting fast. For now, Dallas says it wants to keep him, and there’s no sign the sides are itching for a split. But around the league, rival teams are already viewing him as one of the biggest names who could shake up the playoff picture.
“Yet when you talk to rival teams about players who would truly change the playoff landscape if they were dealt, and who are widely expected to generate serious interest because of that belief, Irving still tops the list. Never mind that the Mavericks, and Irving for that matter, have shown no signs of wanting a split. Quite the opposite, in fact,” Sam Amick wrote.
That kind of attention figures to come from more than one place. The Miami Heat are one team mentioned as a possible suitor, and they could matter to the Celtics angle here. Miami does not look like a strong team right now even after landing Giannis Antetokounmpo in the offseason, and that could leave them tempted to get aggressive and overpay for Irving.
In Other News...
Celtics Hot Start Feels Different For One Very Real Reason
Bostons fast start has come with a clear formula, and it looks a little different from the versions of Celtics teams that have piled up wins in recent years. This group is leaning hard into possession basketball, using three-point shooting, rebounding and pressure defense to squeeze out extra chances, and the early returns have been strong enough to help push the club to a 10-2 record.
What makes it stand out is how complete the profile has been so far, with the Celtics showing up near the top of the league in the areas that most directly shape the math of a game. There is still room for cleaner execution, though, especially with some key shooters still finding their percentages and the team giving the ball away too often for comfort, which leaves a little tension beneath the hot start. [Read more 🡒]
Celtics Face A Risky Dejounte Murray Decision They Can't Ignore
Dejounte Murrays trade request out of New Orleans has put another familiar name into the Celtics orbit, and it is the kind of possibility that naturally gets attention in Boston. He has long been viewed as a talented guard who can change the shape of a backcourt, and with the Celtics always weighing ways to stay ahead of the league, his availability is at least worth discussing as the offseason picture shifts.
The problem is that the fit is not clean, and the price would not be small. Boston would have to think hard about what it would mean to move Derrick White in any deal that made the money work, while also sorting through the broader questions that have followed Murray for years, from injuries to the uneven team situations he has been part of. For a Celtics team built on continuity and two-way reliability, that makes this one of those ideas that sounds intriguing until the details start to matter. [Read more 🡒]
Baylor Scheierman Just Made Bostons Lineup Decision Much Harder
Bostons comeback win over Toronto did more than erase a 22-point hole, it also gave the Celtics another look at a lineup wrinkle that may be harder to unwind than expected. Baylor Scheierman got the start and made a real impact on both ends, helping steady a group that needed energy, activity and a little bit of everything to claw back into the game.
Scheiermans November has been building toward this kind of conversation anyway. Over seven games this month, he has averaged 8 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists, and the combination of improved shooting and willingness to mix it up on the glass has put Boston in a spot where a rotation decision no longer feels automatic. [Read more 🡒]