Mavericks' sleeper Kyrie Irving clone is pricing himself out of Dallas

The Dallas Mavericks have found Kyrie Irving 2.0 in Brandon Williams this season, but his future in Dallas isn't as guaranteed as it once was. Williams has gone from a two-way player to the Mavericks' starting point guard, but his recent surge is going to make it extremely hard for Dallas to keep him moving forward.

He is set to become an unrestricted free agent after this season, and his price tag is only going up as the 2025-26 season wraps up. Dallas needs all of the point guard help that they can get as they enter the first year of this new era, and Williams hitting the open market couldn't be happening at a worse time.

Brandon Williams is raising his price every night

He's averaging 16.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game while shooting 50.9 percent from the field and 40 percent from downtown over the last five games, and his stats are only poised to rise as the season goes on. Dallas is in clear tank mode with just over 20 games remaining, and Williams' chances to shine should drastically increase.

He and Ryan Nembhard are the only two true point guards on the roster, and they'll likely split the workload of leading the offense to finish the year. This is how things were earlier in the season, and Mavericks fans got a good look at how their dynamic together could look on Tuesday night against the Charlotte Hornets.

Williams played 27 minutes while Nembhard played 21, and Jason Kidd had one of the two players on the floor at all times. This will likely continue for the rest of the season, and Kidd will likely lean on keeping Williams as his starter with how he's been playing recently (unless he elects to run a big starting lineup without a true point guard).

What makes Brandon Williams so dangerous

With this in mind, teams across the league are going to get an even better look at what Williams can do. He's already the fifth-leading scorer on the team despite only being in his first full season on a standard contract, and he's proving that he can be a valuable role player on any team moving forward.

His ability to get to the rim, hit tough mid-range jumpers off the dribble, and dominate with his speed are reminiscent of Kyrie Irving, and Mavericks fans can't help but compare the two players due to their similar playstyles. Williams has learned a lot from Irving over the last few years in Dallas, and Irving continuing to guide him will be crucial if the Mavericks can hold onto him.

Dallas finding a way to re-sign him while also addressing their other needs would be a dream come true for Mavericks fans. Unfortunately for them, Williams' last game as a Maverick could come as soon as next month.