Kyrie Irving moved to Texas to join the Dallas Mavericks after an unsuccessful stint with the Brooklyn Nets. Off-court issues and injuries affected Irving’s career more than he would have liked, and ultimately ended his spell in New York. The Nets sent Mavericks Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a 2029 first-round pick and two second-round picks in 2027 and 2029.
Since joining the Mavericks, Irving has had a decent time, after making the NBA Finals in 2024. They lost to the Boston Celtics that year, but it seemed like the only way was up from then on, until generational talent Luka Dončić was traded to L.A. That left Irving’s future in major question, which has now been finalized.
Irving signed a $119 million contract extension with the Mavericks for three years, after weeks of rumors of him entering free agency. This didn’t sit well with Stephen A. Smith, who blasted the Mavericks.
Stephen A. Smith Claims Kyrie Irving Should’ve Been Offered More Than $119 Million
During a recent appearance on “First Take,” Smith was brutally honest about how the Mavericks “low-balled” Irving with the extension. “Kyrie Irving got low-balled. I think he deserves more. It’s Kyrie Irving we’re talking about here,” Smith said.
“I think Kyrie Irving got low-balled.”
—@stephenasmith on Kyrie Irving’s new deal with the Mavs pic.twitter.com/sMY5kvuihe
— First Take (@FirstTake) June 25, 2025
Smith pointed out that Irving has stayed away from all the noise and issues he had in Brooklyn and was ‘balling’ in Dallas. The ESPN analyst was questioning the franchise’s decision to offer less than $43 million per year, when contract figures for other players have been absolutely out of this world in recent days.
In addition, he also claims that if it were still Mark Cuban’s reign, the Mavericks would have still made the investment and offered more to Irving. A large part of Smith’s argument comes from the fact that he believes the Mavericks offered Irving a lower offer because of his ACL injury.
It comes as a huge surprise that the NBA host is unhappy with the franchise, considering how difficult it is to sign players to a contract that can be considered affordable in today’s world.
It is a huge win for the Mavericks to sign Irving to such a contract, which allows them more leeway to build a team to contend for the championship. That is the ultimate goal for them, with Cooper Flagg potentially joining the team soon as well.
Irving also cited his commitment and loyalty toward the team as the reason why he didn’t enter free agency. If he had done so, he would have been able to negotiate a better offer for himself. But it looks like he is content with Dallas now, and the goal would be to help the team win the ring next year.
