Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Players dealt in Kyrie Irving trade clinch playoff berth as Mavericks eliminated

By Sean Keane | Last updated 4/8/23

The Mavericks were eliminated from the playoffs Friday night. An hour earlier, two former Mavs clinched their spot.

Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith, who the Mavs traded for Kyrie Irving in February, secured sixth place in the Eastern Conference when the Nets beat the Orlando Magic. At the same time, Irving was in street clothes, sitting next to owner Mark Cuban, watching the Mavericks lose to the Chicago Bulls.

With 2:33 remaining in the third quarter, Kyrie Irving emerged from the tunnel and sat down in the baseline courtside seat next to Mark Cuban. https://t.co/BWVS2EoIPc
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) April 8, 2023

Dallas dealt three picks and two players for Irving in hopes of turning their fourth-place squad into a contender. Instead, they went 9-17 and fell out of the playoffs. Despite also trading away Kevin Durant, the Nets have gone 13-14 since the two former Mavericks arrived and will play the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round.

It's stunning that the Mavericks gave up so much and got so little for Irving, who they still plan to re-sign . Chris Haynes reported that Dallas plans to surround Doncic and Irving with "versatile wing defenders." Guys like Dorian Finney-Smith, perhaps? Irving is an unrestricted free agent, so the team could end up having traded all that for salary cap space.

Meanwhile, Dinwiddie is scoring 16.9 points and dishing 8.9 assists per game for Brooklyn, who is headed for a rematch of the 2019 opening-round matchup—before the Durant/Irving era for the Nets.

The Mavericks? They're headed for Cancun.

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