In the NBA community, rumors of a reunion between Kyrie Irving and LeBron James have circulated in recent days. The duo previously played together in the Cleveland Cavaliers before Kyrie’s departure for the Boston Celtics. Despite being on different teams, Irving and LeBron have maintained a strong relationship. A notable instance is when LeBron chose Kyrie for his All-Star team in the 2023 All-Star event, demonstrating their bond. As new rumors continue to surface, Skip Bayless suggests that Kyrie Irving wants LeBron James to join him at the Dallas Mavericks. If this scenario were to unfold, it would potentially lead to LeBron playing alongside both Kyrie and Luka Doncic in the league.
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However, Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe strongly refute this proposition on Undisputed. In fact, Skip also suggests that Kyrie’s camp is deliberately leaking such information to manipulate his contract situation with the Mavs. Currently, Kyrie Irving’s contract is worth $136,490,000, after his recent move to the Mavs from the Brooklyn Nets.
Skip Bayless believes Kyrie Irving and his camp are leaking information to re-up his value
Skip Bayless, in the latest episode of Undisputed, elaborated on what might be the case for Kyrie Irving wanting LeBron James in Dallas. If LeBron indeed were to arrive in Dallas, it would indeed make a unique team including him, Irving, and Doncic. However, that does not seem to be the case. Skip is pretty adamant that LeBron wants to stay in LA for another year. Neither does the Lakers have any interest in acquiring Kyrie. Explaining the situation, Skip Bayless said:
“Do I believe LeBron and Kyrie want to do over together? Yes. But it’s pie in the sky, it’s not gonna happen. LeBron will be back next year.” Skip further adds, “Kyrie and his camp are leaking this [Kyrie wanting LeBron to join the Mavs] to try and re-up his value with Mark Cuban.”
This context can be further explained with regard to Kyrie’s performance with the Mavs. Alongside Luka Doncic, Irving played 16 games, with the Mavs finishing 11th seed within their division. This would not qualify them for the playoff, making Skip believe Kyrie’s had virtually no impact on the Dallas lineup.
Kyrie Irving is currently on a 4-year contract with the Mavs, earning $136,490,600. This makes his annual average salary $34,122,650, one of the highest in the league. However, Kyrie, as per Skip, is now trying to manipulate Mark Cuban to offer him a bigger contract. Cuban, on the other hand, wanted a deal that would rather be ‘team friendly’, given Kyrie has quite limited options other than the Mavs.
Is Irving’s new ‘tactic’ to negotiate a bigger contract working?
Kyrie Irving is eligible for a five-year, $272 million deal with the Mavs. However, many sources note that Irving might even agree to a $210 million, 4-year deal. Skip’s belief that Kyrie’s demands might not be materialized can perhaps be true. It is because while Irving and Doncic are unstoppable, the Mavs still need to build the rest of the roster efficiently as the duo.
Irving had a similar situation with the Nets after he entered free agency in 2023. After playing for four years, a new deal with stipulated clauses from the Nets was unacceptable to Kyrie’s camp. This forced his move to the Dallas Mavericks, where we are likely to see him for some time.
