Feb 15, 2025; Oakland, CA, USA; Shaq's OGs guard Kyrie Irving (11) of the Dallas Mavericks talks to media members during the NBA All Star-Practice at Oakland Arena. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Predicting Kyrie Irving's next contract with Dallas Mavericks

Originally posted on Dallas Mavericks on SI
By Austin Veazey | Last updated Jun 16, 2025 7:00 AM ET

Kyrie Irving could be a free agent this summer if he wanted to be. He has a player option worth around $43 million, and he was in line for a passive payday before he tore his ACL in March.

That injury complicates things, but everyone expects him to be back in Dallas and he clearly likes it in Dallas. So what could a potential contract look like? Most expect it to look similar to his most recent three-year, $120 million contract with a player option on the last year as he signed two years ago.

ESPN's Bobby Marks took a stab at what Irving's next contract should look like, saying he should get three years, $113 million.

"The $113 million contract is a win-win for Irving and the Mavericks.

"The $35 million price tag next season is $8 million lower than Irving's player option and gives Dallas greater flexibility to operate below the second apron. The Mavericks now have access to the $5.7 million tax midlevel exception to sign a temporary replacement for Irving. If the nine-time All-Star opts in to his $43 million salary, the Mavericks have only the veteran minimum exception and are over the second apron.

"While there is a drop in salary next season, Irving is guaranteed an additional $70 million in new money. The 33-year old tore his left ACL in March but still remains part of the Mavs' future.

"'The team we're bringing back is a championship-caliber team,' Mavs GM Nico Harrison said after the season. 'We fully expect to have Kyrie back with us next year. When he gets healed from his injury, we believe we'll be competing for a championship.'

"Irving's three-year contract aligns with that of Anthony Davis."

This would be a massive win for the Mavericks to bring his cost down for this season. Winning the Draft Lottery brings a much better prospect to the team in Cooper Flagg, but it also comes with a cap hit twice as high as they were expecting to pay. Getting some of that off of Irving's deal would be huge and allow them to be bigger players in free agency.

This article first appeared on Dallas Mavericks on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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