Mark Cuban gives an update on Kyrie Irving's impending free agency

Noah Weber

Chicago Bulls v Dallas Mavericks / Tim Heitman/GettyImages

The Dallas Mavericks' biggest priority this summer is re-signing Kyrie Irving.

There's no question about it, and the Mavericks have to re-sign him, or else the midseason trade they made for him would be a failure. Dallas gave up Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, and multiple draft picks in exchange for Irving. They can't afford to lose him for nothing as they've already invested so much into him.

All signs point to Irving re-signing, but Mark Cuban was hesitant in what he said regarding Irving's free agency.

Mark Cuban gives an update on Kyrie Irving's impending free agency

Cuban joined Jeff "Skin" Wade and Ben Rogers on the "Ben and Skin Show" on "97.1 The Freak" and was asked about Irving's upcoming free agency and various other topics about the Mavs.

"We want to sign him, and hopefully he wants to come back. I'm not going to handicap anymore. I learned my lesson last year."
Mark Cuban

The Mavericks' interest in bringing him back is obvious, but Cuban was weary about what he thinks Irving wants to do. He said, "hopefully he wants to come back." Cuban then talked about how he learned his lesson from last year and wasn't going to say much else about it.

The lesson Cuban learned last year was giving an ultimatum about Jalen Brunson returning. Cuban thought that Brunson would return, and it didn't happen. It was a blunder by the Mavs, as they lost Brunson for nothing. Brunson then went on to have the best season of his career with the Knicks.

Cuban didn't want to make the same mistake with Irving, so he left it at that.

Irving and Luka Doncic didn't live up to expectations in their first season together, but the Mavericks will look to build around them this summer. Cuban said that Dallas' biggest need is a rim protector to anchor their defense. Whether that's through a trade or the draft, Doncic and Irving would benefit tremendously from having a new rim protector.

It looks like Irving wants to stay in Dallas, but anything can happen, as we saw last summer. Stay tuned to see what happens with the Mavericks this summer and if Irving re-signs.

Noah Weber

Noah Weber is the Site Expert for The Smoking Cuban, covering the Dallas Mavericks as a credentialed media member since the 2022-23 season. With a Bachelor of Science in Sports Media from Oklahoma State University, Noah has worked in sports journalism since 2019. While he's covered the Dallas Cowboys and Oklahoma State Cowboys, he has now established himself as a go-to voice for Mavericks coverage. Noah's expertise includes in-depth game analysis, social media content creation, and offering unique perspectives through his reporting. His work has been featured on major platforms such as ESPN, Bleacher Report, and Overtime. During his time at Oklahoma State, Noah won first place in the Oklahoma Broadcast Education Association Awards for a show he co-produced. Outside of covering the Mavs, Noah enjoys working out, playing basketball and Spikeball, and spending quality time with friends and family.