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By Aman Sharma
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Kyrie Irving would apparently be happy in South Florida, but the Miami Heat aren’t racing to bring him there.
The Dallas Mavericks guard wants to play for Miami, according to 5ReasonsSports’ Ethan Skolnick, who added that Heat coach Erik Spoelstra thinks very highly of Irving. Skolnick doesn’t see a deal coming soon, though.
Speaking on the “Five on the Floor” podcast, Skolnick explained where things stand.
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“I think we’ve both heard he’s interested in playing down in Miami. I also know Spoelstra holds him in very high regard,” Skolnick said. “All indications are this is a place he’d be comfortable.”
Timing is the sticking point. Skolnick believes Miami wants a longer look at its own roster before chasing a star.
“My thought is, I don’t think anything is imminent. I think the Heat are going to let this play out a little bit and see if [Pelle] Larsson can make the leap and what [Ryan] Conwell can eventually give us in the rotation,” Skolnick added.
Miami has stumbled out of the gate. The Heat lost their first four games after landing Giannis Antetokounmpo in an offseason trade before finally breaking through to improve to 1-4.
That trade also thinned out Miami’s war chest. ESPN’s Shams Charania pointed out on “The Pat McAfee Show” that the Heat sent out three firsts plus a swap, among other pieces, and have one first-round pick left to deal.
“Is that enough to get Kyrie Irving? My sense is probably not. I think the price would be higher than that,” Charania said.
Picks matter in Dallas as well. ESPN’s Tim MacMahon reported that earlier moves left the Mavericks without control of any first-round pick over the next four drafts.
Mavericks officials haven’t said publicly they’ll shop Irving, but MacMahon wrote that league sources anticipate a “robust market” for the eight-time All-Star.
Irving, 34, is averaging 18 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists while hitting 49.1% from the field across four games since his return to a Dallas team built around Cooper Flagg.
Charania expects several teams to track Irving.
Much depends on Larsson and Conwell. If they can’t provide the lift, the Heat will have to find out whether one first-round pick can outbid that competition.
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