Kyrie Irving's trade rumor stance shows why Mavericks should keep him

Kyrie Irving has heard the trade rumors constantly surrounding him and his teammates over the past few months. He knows he's 15 years older than Cooper Flagg, but he also understands these trade rumors are a distraction from what the Dallas Mavericks are building.

Despite being counted out by many before the regular season began, the Mavs have shown signs that they could be a playoff team in the Western Conference. Irving and Flagg are looking like one of the best duos in the NBA, Daniel Gafford is having a bounce-back season after struggling to stay on the court last season, and their depth looks excellent.

Kyrie Irving brought up the trade rumors on Monday night

Dallas is quietly playing much better than many expected, and when asked about the factors that have led to their 7-4 start, Irving brought up the way that they've handled the elephant in the room: trade rumors.

Irving opened up about these rumors following Dallas' win over the Indiana Pacers on Monday, and his stance on them, combined with the leadership and guidance that he's providing the rest of the team during a time when these reports are flying, is why the Mavericks should keep him around. Kyrie has made it clear he likes where he's at, and he's doing whatever he can to make sure the trade talk doesn't affect what Dallas has going.

Irving called these rumors "distractions" in his press conference, and the way that he's leading the team is refreshing. Mavericks fans were getting tired of hearing Kyrie trade rumors, especially since the team doesn't want to trade him, and it seems like he aligns with that thinking as well.

"I let the team know, out of my own mouth, that these trade rumors, anything that’s going on with me, do not let this infiltrate our locker room," Irving said. "Don’t let this get in the way of what we have building here."

Kyrie's stance on these rumors is helping the Mavericks win

He said that this has been "one of the contributing factors" to their early-season success. With this in mind, the Mavs should not trade him. They have been able to push all of the rumors to the side over the first few weeks of the season, and they shouldn't change that mindset now.

Dallas is playing well enough to make the playoffs for the first time since 2024, and Kyrie is a major reason for this. The Mavericks are now 7-2 in games that he plays in, and his chemistry with Coop has played a big factor in how they're playing.

Dallas' new star duo combined for 78 points against Indiana, and Irving's unreal shotmaking has been game-changing for a Mavericks team that struggled to generate quality offense last season. He went 7-of-10 from three in 38 minutes against the Pacers, and was a +29.

Irving isn't letting the trade rumors rattle him

The Mavs are obviously a much better team with him healthy, and this is true on and off the court.

He knows what it's like for teams to get rattled by outside distractions, and he's making sure that doesn't happen with the Mavericks. Irving likes the momentum that they've built so far this season with their youth, depth, and energy, and the fact that he's willing to address the trade rumors is telling of how he feels.

He isn't feeding into them. Instead, he's shutting them down. This is why Dallas should keep him.

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