Dallas Mavericks point guard Kyrie Irving will miss a chunk of next season recovering from his left ACL injury. The Duke product tore his left ACL on March 3 against the Sacramento Kings.
According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, the Mavericks "will be looking to add a capable starter this summer who can later transition into a complementary role once Irving has returned to active duty."
Irving has a player option to return to the Mavericks next season. According to Fischer, the nine-time All-Star is expected to decline his player option and sign a new contract with Dallas this summer.
Dallas Mavericks stars Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis
Dallas Mavericks stars Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis
Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
So, who are the Mavericks going to acquire to start at point guard while Irving is out? Marc Stein of The Stein Line is reporting that Dallas is interested in Jrue Holiday, Lonzo Ball and Chris Paul.
Holiday is under contract with the Boston Celtics, while Ball is under contract with the Chicago Bulls. The Mavericks would have to trade players to get Holiday or Ball.
Meanwhile, Paul played for the San Antonio Spurs this season. He becomes an unrestricted free agent this offseason, so the Mavericks can sign him outright.
"League sources say Dallas is expected to at least explore whether there are any feasible trade pathways to Boston's Jrue Holiday — complicated as that would likely be given the three years and $104 million still left on Holiday's contract — while also maintaining an interest in a far more reasonable trade target as we've discussed on the DLLS Mavs podcast: Lonzo Ball," Stein wrote.
"Another name to monitor for Dallas: Chris Paul. The free agent-to-be just turned 40 on May 6, but Paul also just played (and started) 82 games in his maiden season as a San Antonio Spur."
Holiday and the Celtics lost to the New York Knicks in the second round of this year's playoffs in six games, while Ball and the Bulls and Paul and the Spurs missed the postseason.
Dallas won the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery. The franchise is widely expected to select Duke's Cooper Flagg with the first overall pick in this year's draft.