Kyrie Irving and the Dallas Mavericks have been one of the NBA’s biggest surprises since the trade deadline, winning four of their last five games despite missing both Luka Doncic and Anthony Davis.
The Mavericks made headlines with a blockbuster trade at the deadline, sending Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Davis as part of a three-team deal. However, Davis suffered an adductor strain in his Dallas debut on February 8, sidelining him for multiple weeks.
On Sunday, the Mavericks faced the new trio of Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Draymond Green, but their momentum was halted in a 126-102 loss to the Golden State Warriors.
Next up, Irving and the Mavericks will travel to Los Angeles on Tuesday to take on the Lakers, marking Doncic’s first game against his former team. After Sunday’s defeat, Irving shared his thoughts on the upcoming showdown.
“High-level basketball game,” Irving said. “Lot of good players on the floor at once. Outside just the obvious of us being in LA, being a former team of Luka’s. Obviously, the narrative’s already written. I don’t know what else I can add to that. I’m pretty much focused and telling my guys to focus on the high-level game that we gotta win.”
Doncic is coming off his strongest performance with the Lakers, tallying 32 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists in Saturday’s 123-100 victory over Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. Aware of his former teammate’s hot streak, Irving issued a clear warning.
“They’re going to come in and be ready to play against us,” Irving added. “Luka’s obviously gonna have a lot of confidence. He played well last game, so he’s feeling good, and we just gotta be aware of it.”
Irving and the Mavericks will take on Doncic, LeBron James, and the Lakers on Tuesday at 10:00 p.m. ET at Crypto.com Arena. Davis remains sidelined as he continues his recovery.
