Rockets' collapse could force Mavericks to consider an unthinkable Kyrie Irving trade

New team president Masai Ujiri has made it clear he has no intentions of trading Kyrie Irving from the Dallas Mavericks at this point, but if he were to reverse course on this action this summer or at some point down the line, the Mavericks could trade Irving to a point guard-starved team like the Houston Rockets in an effort to jettison their rebuild around Cooper Flagg.

The Rockets were bounced in the first round of the NBA Playoffs by the Los Angeles Lakers, and year one of the Kevin Durant experiment did not work out. They clearly need much more shot creation and overall offensive play if they want to get over the hump, and calling Dallas about Irving may be the next move they need to make.

This would be a tough blow in the sense of losing a leader like Irving to a division rival in Houston, but it'd give Dallas a young core around Flagg with extreme promise. A potential return package for Irving could be something along the lines of Jabari Smith Jr., Reed Sheppard, and multiple first-round draft picks.

Why Houston makes sense as a Kyrie Irving trade partner

With the Mavericks not having any future first-round picks till 2031 outside of this upcoming draft, this would give them ample opportunities to find Flagg's co-star of the future. It would also open up minutes for a potential guard they'd presumably select in the 2026 NBA Draft to fully develop alongside Flagg, as Irving will inevitably take up most of the minutes at point guard should he return to Dallas next season.

Sheppard is a talented young player in his own right, as he's a sneaky athlete, and can develop into an elite three-level scorer one day, given how polished his jumper already is from beyond the arc. He's a solid defender at the point guard position and was the third pick in the draft just two years ago. He'd theoretically have a crack at Dallas' starting point guard position as well, but could play off-ball too if needed since his shooting is already elite.

Smith Jr. fits Ujiri's favorite prototype as a rangy defensive wing and is coming off his best offensive season in the league as well. At 6-foot-11, he averaged 15.8 points and 6.9 rebounds per game with shooting splits of 44.9/36.3/77.5 in his age-22 season.

Mavs would be set for the future, but there are obvious risks attached

He'd be locked up for five seasons in Dallas after signing a five-year, $122 million contract extension with the Rockets last summer, and would be the perfect four-man to put alongside Flagg long-term, especially if his shot continues to develop.

The Rockets suffered immensely in the playoffs after losing in the first round after five games to the Luka Doncic-less Los Angeles Lakers, and a huge part of this was not having a tried-and-true floor general to facilitate offense on a possession-by-possession basis. Irving would fill that need and more, and has had more time off from his torn ACL compared to 32-year-old guard Fred VanVleet, who is also coming off a torn ACL and projects to be Houston's starting point guard next season.

Ultimately, the Mavericks may not be as competitive next season if they were to trade Irving to Houston around this sort of framework in a deal, but they'd have the pieces to be competitive shortly thereafter, and would have a lot more flexibility in building around Flagg going forward with increased draft capital. It may not be worth shipping Irving to a division rival at this point, but this theoretical package would sure be tempting for Ujiri and company if it were offered by Houston this offseason.

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