Kyrie Irving’s usage rate drastically increased when the Dallas Mavericks shockingly shipped Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers. The nine-time NBA All-Star was the secondary ball-handler behind Doncic, but he is now Dallas’ primary creator on offense.
The Dallas Mavericks guard recently leaped to the defense of general manager Nico Harrison and head coach Jason Kidd for the immense hate they received from the fans in the aftermath of the three-team deal.
“My goals are set in stone. I’ve let everybody around me know what my goals are to create a better environment for me… When you have Kidd and Nico doing their things behind the scenes, making sure we’re a good group personality-wise, makes my job a lot easier to go out and lead this group,” Irving said via Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News.
“I’m in this league to win championships. I don’t want to waste my time waking up & not having a purpose out there on the court, just an awareness that I have lesser years playing than I do more,” he added.
Dallas Mavericks face a sizeable climb to qualify for the playoffs
The Dallas Mavericks are ninth in the Western Conference with a 31-28 record. Following their latest loss against Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers, the Dallas Mavericks are on a two-game slide.
Kyrie Irving led Dallas in the losing effort with 35 points, seven rebounds, four assists, three steals, two blocks, and five three-pointers on 12-for-27 shooting from the field in 40 minutes. Klay Thompson and Max Christie added 22 and 10 points.
Dallas will open their three-game homestand against the Charlotte Hornets later.
