Trade & Free Agency 2026/2027

[KillerLeft]

The variable we're not taking seriously enough, and that even Fisher only mentions in passing, is: What does Kyrie expect for his next contract? It makes NO sense to pay him as a star and get stuck holding that bag before Flagg is even in his prime, imo. If Kyrie wants to give a year or two at significantly under market value so that he won't be an albatross to team building afterwards as he finishes his next contract, then I suppose it's worth a conversation - there are benefits to keeping him around under those circumstances.

But, IDK...I just feel like that's very unlikely. I think it's far more likely that he'll want one more big payday, and that it will make a lot more sense for a good team who views him as the finishing piece to pay it. We can argue about whether the Mavs will win 33 or 43 this season, but they are at least two years away from winning 50 or 60. Simply put, they are only relevant because they have one of the better, up and coming YOUNG players in the league, which is just another way of saying they are not relevant.