Flagg to fly as top pick while Aussies chase NBA dream
Teen giant Rocco Zikarsky and athletic forward Alex Toohey headline Australia's list of NBA draft hopefuls eager follow No.1 pick-in-waiting Cooper Flagg onto the world stage.
Brisbane Bullets centre Zikarsky and Sydney Kings talent Toohey are projected second-round selections at the two-day event, starting on Thursday (AEST) in New York.
The pair of NBL Next Stars were named in ESPN's top 100 players for the draft alongside Duke University guard Tyrese Proctor and Illawarra Hawks centre Lachlan Olbrich.
University of Louisville sharpshooter Reyne Smith is also eligible and considered an outside chance.
All are part of a strong contingent of international prospects, with about one-third of this year's selections likely to hail from outside the US.
But for the first time in three years, the top selection won't be from France.
Flagg was the best player in college basketball last season, leading Duke to the Final Four despite starting the campaign as a 17-year-old.
The burgeoning superstar is set to land at the Dallas Mavericks, who hold the No.1 pick, with Rutgers University duo Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey also in the mix as possible top-three selections.
But this year's draft is considered wide open - and that's where the Australians come in.
Toohey has impressed NBA scouts with his smarts and improved shooting, and could even be taken with a late first-round pick, which would earn him a guaranteed two-year contract.
If so, the 201cm prospect would follow in the recent footsteps of countrymen Josh Giddey (No.6, 2021) and Dyson Daniels (No.8, 2022) as a first-round selection.
Zikarsky had a quieter second campaign in the NBL that ended prematurely due to a knee injury.
But the 18-year-old is seen as a sleeper and a chance to be taken in the second round, offering the rare and imposing height of 220cm.
A possible defensive anchor, Zikarsky's height and standing reach topped all participants and turned heads at the draft combine.
Olbrich's combine performance catapulted him up draft boards following a season when he was an integral part of Illawarra's NBL championship.
Proctor, a point guard, is also rated a good chance of being selected after three seasons at one of the USA's most prominent basketball colleges.
Smith has built his stocks around his elite shooting which could entice NBA teams, though the Tasmanian appears more likely to head to Europe.
The Australian contingent of NBA draft hopefuls this year decreased when Alex Condon and Ben Henshall withdrew.
Florida Gators power forward Condon will return for another college title push, while Perth Wildcats forward Henshall is yet to decide his future after earning plaudits in the NBL last season.
Henshall's Wildcats teammate Izan Almansa - another NBL Next Star - is also in draft contention this year.
The 20-year-old Spanish big man could add to the growing success of the Next Stars program, which has produced nine players drafted directly from the NBL to NBA - including six in the last five years.
Former Next Stars AJ Johnson, Alex Sarr and Bobi Klintman were all picked up in last year's draft and have since made their NBA debuts.
French forward Ousmane Dieng won the NBA title with Oklahoma City this week, three years after completing his Next Star stint with the New Zealand Breakers.
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Wallabies' preparation for Lions the priority: Larkham
Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham is taking a country before club approach to selection for the British and Irish Lions, but is hopeful some Wallabies will return for the ACT clash. After arriving in Perth for their opening tour match against the Western Force on Saturday, Lions boss Ben Calveley claimed Rugby Australia was in danger of breaching the tour agreement if they didn't release their best Wallabies to the state teams the tourists will face. This was brushed off by RA with Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt already freeing five Force players from his 36-strong squad, while on Wednesday hooker Matt Faessler and centre Hunter Paisami were given the green light to turn out for their Queensland side. Lukhan Salakaia-Loto (shoulder) and Seru Uru (knee) have also both been cleared to play for the Reds against the Lions next Wednesday and push their case to return to the Wallabies squad. Larkham, who was part of the triumphant 2001 Australian campaign, said he understood a Wallabies series win was the priority for the country. "Knowing that the Wallabies have to get their preparation right going into that first game - they've got a game against Fiji on Sunday and we play on the Wednesday," said the former great. "And then 10 days later the Wallabies play their first Test against British and Irish Lions, so if some of our players aren't playing for us in preparation for that first Test it's certainly understandable." Bowing out in the Super Rugby Pacific semi-finals earlier this month, the Brumbies have a proud record against the Lions - in 2013 they became the first provincial side to post a victory on Australian soil in more than 40 years. Larkham said they had shown vision of that win to the current crop and excitement, and pressure, was building ahead of the July 9 match in Canberra. He said conversations were continuing about players who weren't going to be used in the first Test in Brisbane on July 19 returning to bolster the Brumbies. "We're short in a couple of positions and we are reliant on some of those Wallabies coming back in," he said, with the Brumbies providing 10 squad members and four training partners, with young prop Lington Ieli also joining the camp. "Certainly those players who are training up there, we're reliant on those guys coming back into the squad to play and then hopefully a couple of Test players come back into our team to play in that game as well. "There's a couple of conversations that have to happen with Rugby Australia at the back end of this week when they'll know a little bit more around who they're going to select for the Fiji game. "Then we'll know who we're going to have available for our game against the Lions." Speaking from the Wallabies base in Sydney, Force flyhalf Ben Donaldson said he would happily play in Perth if released from the Test squad. "Oh yeah, I think so ... any chance you get to play against the Lions, you probably take it with both hands," Donaldson said. "I'm hearing it's going to be a huge crowd out at Optus (Stadium) in Perth so it would be extremely exciting, especially off the back of the year we had at the Force this year. "Even to play in front of the fans, just to give them something to cheer about to finish the year, it would have been awesome." Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham is taking a country before club approach to selection for the British and Irish Lions, but is hopeful some Wallabies will return for the ACT clash. After arriving in Perth for their opening tour match against the Western Force on Saturday, Lions boss Ben Calveley claimed Rugby Australia was in danger of breaching the tour agreement if they didn't release their best Wallabies to the state teams the tourists will face. This was brushed off by RA with Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt already freeing five Force players from his 36-strong squad, while on Wednesday hooker Matt Faessler and centre Hunter Paisami were given the green light to turn out for their Queensland side. Lukhan Salakaia-Loto (shoulder) and Seru Uru (knee) have also both been cleared to play for the Reds against the Lions next Wednesday and push their case to return to the Wallabies squad. Larkham, who was part of the triumphant 2001 Australian campaign, said he understood a Wallabies series win was the priority for the country. "Knowing that the Wallabies have to get their preparation right going into that first game - they've got a game against Fiji on Sunday and we play on the Wednesday," said the former great. "And then 10 days later the Wallabies play their first Test against British and Irish Lions, so if some of our players aren't playing for us in preparation for that first Test it's certainly understandable." Bowing out in the Super Rugby Pacific semi-finals earlier this month, the Brumbies have a proud record against the Lions - in 2013 they became the first provincial side to post a victory on Australian soil in more than 40 years. Larkham said they had shown vision of that win to the current crop and excitement, and pressure, was building ahead of the July 9 match in Canberra. He said conversations were continuing about players who weren't going to be used in the first Test in Brisbane on July 19 returning to bolster the Brumbies. "We're short in a couple of positions and we are reliant on some of those Wallabies coming back in," he said, with the Brumbies providing 10 squad members and four training partners, with young prop Lington Ieli also joining the camp. "Certainly those players who are training up there, we're reliant on those guys coming back into the squad to play and then hopefully a couple of Test players come back into our team to play in that game as well. "There's a couple of conversations that have to happen with Rugby Australia at the back end of this week when they'll know a little bit more around who they're going to select for the Fiji game. "Then we'll know who we're going to have available for our game against the Lions." Speaking from the Wallabies base in Sydney, Force flyhalf Ben Donaldson said he would happily play in Perth if released from the Test squad. "Oh yeah, I think so ... any chance you get to play against the Lions, you probably take it with both hands," Donaldson said. "I'm hearing it's going to be a huge crowd out at Optus (Stadium) in Perth so it would be extremely exciting, especially off the back of the year we had at the Force this year. "Even to play in front of the fans, just to give them something to cheer about to finish the year, it would have been awesome." Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham is taking a country before club approach to selection for the British and Irish Lions, but is hopeful some Wallabies will return for the ACT clash. After arriving in Perth for their opening tour match against the Western Force on Saturday, Lions boss Ben Calveley claimed Rugby Australia was in danger of breaching the tour agreement if they didn't release their best Wallabies to the state teams the tourists will face. This was brushed off by RA with Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt already freeing five Force players from his 36-strong squad, while on Wednesday hooker Matt Faessler and centre Hunter Paisami were given the green light to turn out for their Queensland side. Lukhan Salakaia-Loto (shoulder) and Seru Uru (knee) have also both been cleared to play for the Reds against the Lions next Wednesday and push their case to return to the Wallabies squad. Larkham, who was part of the triumphant 2001 Australian campaign, said he understood a Wallabies series win was the priority for the country. "Knowing that the Wallabies have to get their preparation right going into that first game - they've got a game against Fiji on Sunday and we play on the Wednesday," said the former great. "And then 10 days later the Wallabies play their first Test against British and Irish Lions, so if some of our players aren't playing for us in preparation for that first Test it's certainly understandable." Bowing out in the Super Rugby Pacific semi-finals earlier this month, the Brumbies have a proud record against the Lions - in 2013 they became the first provincial side to post a victory on Australian soil in more than 40 years. Larkham said they had shown vision of that win to the current crop and excitement, and pressure, was building ahead of the July 9 match in Canberra. He said conversations were continuing about players who weren't going to be used in the first Test in Brisbane on July 19 returning to bolster the Brumbies. "We're short in a couple of positions and we are reliant on some of those Wallabies coming back in," he said, with the Brumbies providing 10 squad members and four training partners, with young prop Lington Ieli also joining the camp. "Certainly those players who are training up there, we're reliant on those guys coming back into the squad to play and then hopefully a couple of Test players come back into our team to play in that game as well. "There's a couple of conversations that have to happen with Rugby Australia at the back end of this week when they'll know a little bit more around who they're going to select for the Fiji game. "Then we'll know who we're going to have available for our game against the Lions." Speaking from the Wallabies base in Sydney, Force flyhalf Ben Donaldson said he would happily play in Perth if released from the Test squad. "Oh yeah, I think so ... any chance you get to play against the Lions, you probably take it with both hands," Donaldson said. "I'm hearing it's going to be a huge crowd out at Optus (Stadium) in Perth so it would be extremely exciting, especially off the back of the year we had at the Force this year. "Even to play in front of the fans, just to give them something to cheer about to finish the year, it would have been awesome."
The Advertiser
an hour ago
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Brother v brother as Lions brace for tough Force battle
Brotherly bragging rights will go on the line when the British & Irish Lions kick off their Australian tour against the Western Force at Optus Stadium. The Lions arrived in Australia licking their wounds after suffering a shock 28-24 loss to Argentina in Dublin last weekend. Irish scrumhalf Jamison Gibson-Park (glute) and winger Hugo Keenan (calf) joined the Lions camp under injury clouds and are in doubt to take on the Force. The on-field rivalry is set to be fierce on Saturday as the Force, powered by Wallabies such as Nic White, Dylan Pietsch, Tom Robertson and Darcy Swain attempt to inflict an early psychological blow on the Lions. There will also be rivalry off the field, with Lions assistant coach Andrew Goodman keen to get one over his brother Chris, who works at the Force as their general manager of rugby. "Yeah, a bit of added spice there," Andrew said after Lions training on Wednesday. "It's been great to catch up with him and his family, and I've got my older brother over as well, so a bit of a family occasion for us. "My nephews were asking who they reckon grandma is going to be supporting, so I'd say she'd have both (colours) on." Andrew revealed it's not the first time the brothers have gone head to head, with the Force taking on an Emerging Ireland side late last year. "I was helping out with Emerging Ireland, so we had a little battle there," he said. "We got up in that one, so it's 1-0 at the moment. "This will be the second one in a number of months, so there's always some good banter that goes on. "I obviously keep a good eye on the Force, because I'm wanting them to do well during the Super Rugby season." Lions head coach Andy Farrell has forecast making widespread changes for the game as he looks to find the right combinations among his 38-man squad. Goodman said it was easy to identify the areas his team struggled with against Argentina. "Turnovers. There were a lot of turnovers, a lot of forced offloads," Goodman said. "We threw five intercept passes, just from not sighting a target. "If we can get more cohesion with our attack in terms of finishing our last pass, we will see an improved effort. "When there's four countries coming together, there are going to be little combinations that you need to build, and it can take time. "But it's not an excuse, just a reality, and something we're looking to get better and better with every time we go on the training track." The Lions beat the Force 69-17 when they last toured Australia in 2013. Brotherly bragging rights will go on the line when the British & Irish Lions kick off their Australian tour against the Western Force at Optus Stadium. The Lions arrived in Australia licking their wounds after suffering a shock 28-24 loss to Argentina in Dublin last weekend. Irish scrumhalf Jamison Gibson-Park (glute) and winger Hugo Keenan (calf) joined the Lions camp under injury clouds and are in doubt to take on the Force. The on-field rivalry is set to be fierce on Saturday as the Force, powered by Wallabies such as Nic White, Dylan Pietsch, Tom Robertson and Darcy Swain attempt to inflict an early psychological blow on the Lions. There will also be rivalry off the field, with Lions assistant coach Andrew Goodman keen to get one over his brother Chris, who works at the Force as their general manager of rugby. "Yeah, a bit of added spice there," Andrew said after Lions training on Wednesday. "It's been great to catch up with him and his family, and I've got my older brother over as well, so a bit of a family occasion for us. "My nephews were asking who they reckon grandma is going to be supporting, so I'd say she'd have both (colours) on." Andrew revealed it's not the first time the brothers have gone head to head, with the Force taking on an Emerging Ireland side late last year. "I was helping out with Emerging Ireland, so we had a little battle there," he said. "We got up in that one, so it's 1-0 at the moment. "This will be the second one in a number of months, so there's always some good banter that goes on. "I obviously keep a good eye on the Force, because I'm wanting them to do well during the Super Rugby season." Lions head coach Andy Farrell has forecast making widespread changes for the game as he looks to find the right combinations among his 38-man squad. Goodman said it was easy to identify the areas his team struggled with against Argentina. "Turnovers. There were a lot of turnovers, a lot of forced offloads," Goodman said. "We threw five intercept passes, just from not sighting a target. "If we can get more cohesion with our attack in terms of finishing our last pass, we will see an improved effort. "When there's four countries coming together, there are going to be little combinations that you need to build, and it can take time. "But it's not an excuse, just a reality, and something we're looking to get better and better with every time we go on the training track." The Lions beat the Force 69-17 when they last toured Australia in 2013. Brotherly bragging rights will go on the line when the British & Irish Lions kick off their Australian tour against the Western Force at Optus Stadium. The Lions arrived in Australia licking their wounds after suffering a shock 28-24 loss to Argentina in Dublin last weekend. Irish scrumhalf Jamison Gibson-Park (glute) and winger Hugo Keenan (calf) joined the Lions camp under injury clouds and are in doubt to take on the Force. The on-field rivalry is set to be fierce on Saturday as the Force, powered by Wallabies such as Nic White, Dylan Pietsch, Tom Robertson and Darcy Swain attempt to inflict an early psychological blow on the Lions. There will also be rivalry off the field, with Lions assistant coach Andrew Goodman keen to get one over his brother Chris, who works at the Force as their general manager of rugby. "Yeah, a bit of added spice there," Andrew said after Lions training on Wednesday. "It's been great to catch up with him and his family, and I've got my older brother over as well, so a bit of a family occasion for us. "My nephews were asking who they reckon grandma is going to be supporting, so I'd say she'd have both (colours) on." Andrew revealed it's not the first time the brothers have gone head to head, with the Force taking on an Emerging Ireland side late last year. "I was helping out with Emerging Ireland, so we had a little battle there," he said. "We got up in that one, so it's 1-0 at the moment. "This will be the second one in a number of months, so there's always some good banter that goes on. "I obviously keep a good eye on the Force, because I'm wanting them to do well during the Super Rugby season." Lions head coach Andy Farrell has forecast making widespread changes for the game as he looks to find the right combinations among his 38-man squad. Goodman said it was easy to identify the areas his team struggled with against Argentina. "Turnovers. There were a lot of turnovers, a lot of forced offloads," Goodman said. "We threw five intercept passes, just from not sighting a target. "If we can get more cohesion with our attack in terms of finishing our last pass, we will see an improved effort. "When there's four countries coming together, there are going to be little combinations that you need to build, and it can take time. "But it's not an excuse, just a reality, and something we're looking to get better and better with every time we go on the training track." The Lions beat the Force 69-17 when they last toured Australia in 2013.
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Irving signs $A180m NBA deal with Mavs, says insider
The Dallas Mavericks and Australian-born NBA star Kyrie Irving have reportedly agreed on a three-year deal worth more than $A180 million. Former NBA All-Star guard Irving is still recovering from a torn ACL that will sideline him into the 2025-26 season. A person with knowledge of the deal said Irving was declining the $US43 million ($A66 million) player option in the final year of his current three-year contract. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal isn't expected to be finalised until July 6. The new contract, worth a reported $US119 million ($A182 million), will align Irving with co-star Anthony Davis, who joined the Mavericks in the seismic trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in February. Davis has three years remaining on his contract, with a player option that now will be the same season as Irving in 2027-28. The agreement with Irving came on the eve of the NBA draft, with the Mavericks poised to take former Duke star Cooper Flagg with the No.1 pick. Irving also is a Duke alum, as is young centre Dereck Lively II. Once the nine-time All-Star returns from his injury, Irving, Lively and Flagg expect to be in the starting line-up if they are healthy. The 33-year-old, Melbourne-born Irving came to the Mavericks in a 2023 trade after a tumultuous tenure in Brooklyn. The idea was to pair him with Doncic, and a year later the duo led Dallas to the NBA Finals for the first time in 13 years. The decision to send Doncic to the Lakers elevated Irving's status, although Davis's championship pedigree with the Lakers essentially put the two on even footing. Irving, who has averaged 23.7 points and 5.6 assists over 14 seasons, and LeBron James won a title together with Cleveland in 2016. Davis went down with a groin injury in his Dallas debut, and before he could come back, Irving sustained his knee injury about a month after the Doncic trade. Sceptics were plentiful when the Mavs traded for Irving, who wanted out of Brooklyn after three and a half seasons of disappointments on the court and plenty of drama off it. Earlier in the season he was dealt to Dallas, Irving was suspended by the Nets for eight games after his repeated failure to "unequivocally say he has no antisemitic beliefs". That came shortly after Irving refused to issue the apology NBA Commissioner Adam Silver sought for posting a link to an antisemitic work on his Twitter feed. Irving also wound up losing his long relationship with Nike. Irving also missed much of the 2021-22 season because of his refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19, which left him essentially ineligible to play in Brooklyn's home games because of New York City pandemic rules. The Dallas Mavericks and Australian-born NBA star Kyrie Irving have reportedly agreed on a three-year deal worth more than $A180 million. Former NBA All-Star guard Irving is still recovering from a torn ACL that will sideline him into the 2025-26 season. A person with knowledge of the deal said Irving was declining the $US43 million ($A66 million) player option in the final year of his current three-year contract. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal isn't expected to be finalised until July 6. The new contract, worth a reported $US119 million ($A182 million), will align Irving with co-star Anthony Davis, who joined the Mavericks in the seismic trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in February. Davis has three years remaining on his contract, with a player option that now will be the same season as Irving in 2027-28. The agreement with Irving came on the eve of the NBA draft, with the Mavericks poised to take former Duke star Cooper Flagg with the No.1 pick. Irving also is a Duke alum, as is young centre Dereck Lively II. Once the nine-time All-Star returns from his injury, Irving, Lively and Flagg expect to be in the starting line-up if they are healthy. The 33-year-old, Melbourne-born Irving came to the Mavericks in a 2023 trade after a tumultuous tenure in Brooklyn. The idea was to pair him with Doncic, and a year later the duo led Dallas to the NBA Finals for the first time in 13 years. The decision to send Doncic to the Lakers elevated Irving's status, although Davis's championship pedigree with the Lakers essentially put the two on even footing. Irving, who has averaged 23.7 points and 5.6 assists over 14 seasons, and LeBron James won a title together with Cleveland in 2016. Davis went down with a groin injury in his Dallas debut, and before he could come back, Irving sustained his knee injury about a month after the Doncic trade. Sceptics were plentiful when the Mavs traded for Irving, who wanted out of Brooklyn after three and a half seasons of disappointments on the court and plenty of drama off it. Earlier in the season he was dealt to Dallas, Irving was suspended by the Nets for eight games after his repeated failure to "unequivocally say he has no antisemitic beliefs". That came shortly after Irving refused to issue the apology NBA Commissioner Adam Silver sought for posting a link to an antisemitic work on his Twitter feed. Irving also wound up losing his long relationship with Nike. Irving also missed much of the 2021-22 season because of his refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19, which left him essentially ineligible to play in Brooklyn's home games because of New York City pandemic rules. The Dallas Mavericks and Australian-born NBA star Kyrie Irving have reportedly agreed on a three-year deal worth more than $A180 million. Former NBA All-Star guard Irving is still recovering from a torn ACL that will sideline him into the 2025-26 season. A person with knowledge of the deal said Irving was declining the $US43 million ($A66 million) player option in the final year of his current three-year contract. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal isn't expected to be finalised until July 6. The new contract, worth a reported $US119 million ($A182 million), will align Irving with co-star Anthony Davis, who joined the Mavericks in the seismic trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in February. Davis has three years remaining on his contract, with a player option that now will be the same season as Irving in 2027-28. The agreement with Irving came on the eve of the NBA draft, with the Mavericks poised to take former Duke star Cooper Flagg with the No.1 pick. Irving also is a Duke alum, as is young centre Dereck Lively II. Once the nine-time All-Star returns from his injury, Irving, Lively and Flagg expect to be in the starting line-up if they are healthy. The 33-year-old, Melbourne-born Irving came to the Mavericks in a 2023 trade after a tumultuous tenure in Brooklyn. The idea was to pair him with Doncic, and a year later the duo led Dallas to the NBA Finals for the first time in 13 years. The decision to send Doncic to the Lakers elevated Irving's status, although Davis's championship pedigree with the Lakers essentially put the two on even footing. Irving, who has averaged 23.7 points and 5.6 assists over 14 seasons, and LeBron James won a title together with Cleveland in 2016. Davis went down with a groin injury in his Dallas debut, and before he could come back, Irving sustained his knee injury about a month after the Doncic trade. Sceptics were plentiful when the Mavs traded for Irving, who wanted out of Brooklyn after three and a half seasons of disappointments on the court and plenty of drama off it. Earlier in the season he was dealt to Dallas, Irving was suspended by the Nets for eight games after his repeated failure to "unequivocally say he has no antisemitic beliefs". That came shortly after Irving refused to issue the apology NBA Commissioner Adam Silver sought for posting a link to an antisemitic work on his Twitter feed. Irving also wound up losing his long relationship with Nike. Irving also missed much of the 2021-22 season because of his refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19, which left him essentially ineligible to play in Brooklyn's home games because of New York City pandemic rules. The Dallas Mavericks and Australian-born NBA star Kyrie Irving have reportedly agreed on a three-year deal worth more than $A180 million. Former NBA All-Star guard Irving is still recovering from a torn ACL that will sideline him into the 2025-26 season. A person with knowledge of the deal said Irving was declining the $US43 million ($A66 million) player option in the final year of his current three-year contract. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal isn't expected to be finalised until July 6. The new contract, worth a reported $US119 million ($A182 million), will align Irving with co-star Anthony Davis, who joined the Mavericks in the seismic trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in February. Davis has three years remaining on his contract, with a player option that now will be the same season as Irving in 2027-28. The agreement with Irving came on the eve of the NBA draft, with the Mavericks poised to take former Duke star Cooper Flagg with the No.1 pick. Irving also is a Duke alum, as is young centre Dereck Lively II. Once the nine-time All-Star returns from his injury, Irving, Lively and Flagg expect to be in the starting line-up if they are healthy. The 33-year-old, Melbourne-born Irving came to the Mavericks in a 2023 trade after a tumultuous tenure in Brooklyn. The idea was to pair him with Doncic, and a year later the duo led Dallas to the NBA Finals for the first time in 13 years. The decision to send Doncic to the Lakers elevated Irving's status, although Davis's championship pedigree with the Lakers essentially put the two on even footing. Irving, who has averaged 23.7 points and 5.6 assists over 14 seasons, and LeBron James won a title together with Cleveland in 2016. Davis went down with a groin injury in his Dallas debut, and before he could come back, Irving sustained his knee injury about a month after the Doncic trade. Sceptics were plentiful when the Mavs traded for Irving, who wanted out of Brooklyn after three and a half seasons of disappointments on the court and plenty of drama off it. Earlier in the season he was dealt to Dallas, Irving was suspended by the Nets for eight games after his repeated failure to "unequivocally say he has no antisemitic beliefs". That came shortly after Irving refused to issue the apology NBA Commissioner Adam Silver sought for posting a link to an antisemitic work on his Twitter feed. Irving also wound up losing his long relationship with Nike. Irving also missed much of the 2021-22 season because of his refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19, which left him essentially ineligible to play in Brooklyn's home games because of New York City pandemic rules.
