The Dallas Mavericks almost traded for Kevin Durant, but a massive setback put an end to negotiations.
After the Dallas Mavericks traded Luka Doncic, many fans worried that the future of their franchise was in jeopardy.
GM Nico Harrison seemed quite short-sighted in his decision, trading a 26-year-old Luka Doncic for a 31-year-old Anthony Davis.
Then, things got even worse when Kyrie Irving got injured and was ruled out till early 2026. After Irving’s injury, it felt like Nico’s plan had failed.
While landing Cooper Flagg with the #1 overall pick definitely helped structure their future going forward, things were looking really bad for them.
In fact, Irving’s injury also shut down the Mavericks’ chances of trading for Kevin Durant before the deadline.
NBA insider Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson spoke in an interview with the HBCU podcast. When talking about Kevin Durant’s situation with the Phoenix Suns, he shared some new information.
As it turns out, the Phoenix Suns were taking calls from the Golden State Warriors, Dallas Mavericks, and Washington Wizards. In fact, he said, if Kyrie Irving didn’t get injured, then the Mavericks would have successfully traded for Kevin Durant.
“The Suns were taking phone calls from other teams that were calling at the deadline. Those teams included Dallas, the Washington Wizards, and the Golden State Warriors.
“Just talking to people across the league, I got the sense that had Kyrie Irving not injured his knee, we might be having another conversation about Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving as members of the Dallas Mavericks.”
Had the Dallas Mavericks landed Kevin Durant, it’s hard to imagine they’d even be in a position to land the #1 overall pick.
Even with Kyrie Irving out hurt, the Mavericks would have been led by a frontcourt pairing of Durant and Anthony Davis.
It’s hard to see a world where the Mavericks wouldn’t at least secure the final playoff spot through the play-in tournament with those two players healthy and active.
However, both parties might be happy with the way things have worked out. As mentioned before, the Mavericks were able to land Cooper Flagg due to their floundering end to the season.
As for Kevin Durant, he joined the Houston Rockets, who are looking like genuine contenders coming into the new season.
