Oct 26, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) reacts against the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center. Mandatory

The Dallas Mavericks’ decision to trade Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers has stayed in the headlines for the last seven weeks. The sheer star power alone is enough to keep people talking, but it was the surprise factor of it all: Doncic never asked for a trade and wanted to be in Dallas, yet he was dumped in the middle of the night without warning.

Dallas fans have revolted and rebelled since the trade happened. “Fire Nico” chants have broken out around the city of Dallas, as fans want general manager Nico Harrison to pay for this trade. A casket has been brought to the plaza outside of the American Airlines Center, and fans have just stopped coming to games.

Feb 25, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) reacts with Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) during the first quarter at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit:

But fans weren’t the only ones dealing with the emotional side of the trade. Mavericks star Kyrie Irving was as close as anyone with Luka Doncic, calling each other “hermanos” on multiple occasions in the two years they played together. And Irving has admitted on a recent Twitch stream that he went through a bunch of emotions after the trade.

“But bringing that sh-t to life—and some of the things that were going on in Dallas, like the casket, the “Fire Nico” chants, and these unfortunate situations where you’re attacking someone who’s just performing a function of the business—that was emotional. It was emotional for a lot of people, and it was emotional for me too. I ain’t gonna lie to you—I struggled a little bit the first few days. But after a while—yo—you get to where you are by making some incredible moves. And mind you, everybody’s going to have their opinion about what we should’ve done or what we should’ve did. But we can only deal with what we’re doing now.”

Irving has been the biggest voice of reason for the Mavs since the trade happened. He’s been more sympathetic than anyone in Dallas’ front office while also trying to move on and lead the team to wins. Unfortunately, Irving tore his ACL against the Sacramento Kings on March 3rd, likely ending any chance the Mavericks have to be competitive in the immediate post-Doncic future.