Mavericks to Shut Down Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving?

The Mavericks are “seriously considering” shutting down star guards Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving for the final three games of the regular season, per Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The Mavs (37-42) have three games remaining, all at home — vs. the Kings, Bulls and Spurs, respectively.

If this is the decision, Dallas does indeed reach, it will be an interesting one. The Mavericks are, after all, still very much alive for a berth in the play-in tournament. They trail the Thunder by just one game for the No. 10 spot in the Western Conference with, again, three to go.

That said, the Mavericks are just 1-7 in their last eight games and have struggled mightily since the trade with the Nets for Irving, with defense being their most glaring issue. And it probably doesn’t help that one of the players they traded for Irving, guard Spencer Dinwiddie, led the NBA in assists in March.

The Irving deal cannot be chalked up as anything as a failure at this point, as the Mavs advanced to the West finals last season and are markedly worse this year. It will be interesting to see what conclusion they reach in the final three games.

Shams Charania says that he’s told the Mavs organization is “seriously considering” shutting down Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving for the final games of the season pic.twitter.com/LU73sz3gnr

— Mavs Film Room ?? (@MavsFilmRoom) April 3, 2023