Irving wants to get closer to Doncic in ‘Team Luka’

LOS ANGELES. After being open about his past and championship dreams for the future, new Maverick Kyrie Irving broached the subject of construction chemistry with Luka Doncic.

Its simple message is: don’t worry about it.

Great players usually have a good chance of getting along with other great players. And that’s how Irving sees it.

“It’s still a wait and see, but for me, am I worried about us coexisting, finding cohesion? No,” Irving said after his first workout with his new team at USC.

“I have played with some of the greatest players of all time. This will be my first time seeing one of those “baaad” Europeans come up and really dominate up close and I have the opportunity to do it at a pace I think I’ve never seen before other than Larry Bird who -someone else who just plays at their own pace, racks up tons of points and is constantly in the MVP talk every year because he gets so much attention.

“As far as I can lead with him, I am ready to do it. But there is no pressure here. Nothing is forced. I just want to enjoy his talent and the talent of my teammates and work towards the championship.”

Oh yes, the C-word.

The Mavericks have every confidence that Irving’s trade is a move that brings them closer to making them legitimate title contenders. Irving won one with LeBron James in Cleveland. He failed playing alongside Jason Tatum in Boston and, more recently, Kevin Durant and James Harden in Brooklyn.

Irving knows it will take a lot of work, a lot of sacrifice and a bit of luck to get to the promised land in Dallas. But he believes that it is quite realistic if there is a tripod of leaders on the court in the person of himself, Luke and coach Jason Kidd.

“I think anything is possible if you are disciplined and focused and consistent and ready,” said Irving, 30. “How we approach each game will be defined by J-Kidd. I just follow their lead, follow other coaches, follow my teammates, and when I need to play other roles, I just do it.

“I feel like some of the best teams in the league are the most dedicated. They know the time to score. They have a high IQ. They shoot down open shots. They read the game very well.”

Irving just described Luke’s performance perfectly. And while there will almost certainly be bumps on the road, preparing for deep playoff runs is something this team can now do more than just dream of.

“You’ll be tested,” Irving said. “Any championship will challenge you in all directions. Nothing will be perfect. So I don’t expect it.

“Therefore, of course, it is expected that we will work on the championship. What I’m saying here, that we’ll win the championship, won’t do anything. These are just words. I’d rather show you there, and the chips will remain where they are.

Kidd is responsible for creating an environment where Doncic and Irving can thrive.

But Kidd left no doubt that some things won’t change when it comes to Mavericks dynamics.

“There’s always a moment when someone’s going to tiptoe in,” Kidd said. “When you look at Kai, he is 30 years old. He is a veteran. He understands what he needs to do. It’s not two 23 year olds trying to figure out who the alpha is.

“We understand that this is Luca’s team. And that will be Luke’s team. For him, it’s just a game for the ball, as he did last year. Everyone attaches great importance to how much he dominated the ball – we had no other options. There’s nothing wrong with that, it’s just the way the line-up was made. But now we’ve improved the line-up and someone else can handle the ball.”

Irving will become a free agent at the end of this season. On Tuesday, he said there was no rush to extend or secure a new deal. He’d rather not be distracted from the immediate task of making the most of this season when the Western Conference appears to be wide open.

He just wants to be all-in with what the Mavericks are trying to achieve.

“I’m very excited,” he said. “I really feel wanted. I know they had to give away some parts to get me here. I don’t take it for granted. Shout out to Mr. (Mark) Cuban and the entire Dallas front office and organization. I was here for about 48 hours and it was nothing short of a warm hug and nothing short of true love.”

Now, Irving said, he can’t wait to push himself and this team a little higher.

“I know that with Niko[Harrison, Mavericks GM]and Jason, they will push me to where I am now,” Irving said. “And that is the type of mentorship and guidance that I need at this stage of my life.

“I’m no longer a kid with an NBA dream. I don’t want to dream in this space. I want to win. And I want to win with guys who demonstrate greatness every single day. And it’s not just on the court. It’s about their professionalism, how they relate to others, in relationships, in sincerity and authenticity.

There have been many instances in the NBA of superstars teaming up during the offseason. It’s not easy to make it work. Allen Iverson went to Denver to join Carmelo Anthony and nothing came of it.

Charles Barkley went to Houston as Hakim Olajuwon’s running mate, and the Rockets never made it to the NBA Finals.

Talent usually rules in the NBA. But this does not guarantee ultimate success.

“It’s not easy to do,” Kidd said. “I thought that what Spencer (Dinwiddie) and Davis (Bertans) did last year and getting JB (Jalen Brunson) into the starting lineup doesn’t always happen when it really improves the team. We would like the same results, but we would not want to be in the Western Conference Finals.

“But we’ll see. Kai said it best: Let’s just see how it goes. Let’s take a few games under our belt. We understand what this entails. There will be good games, but there will be games in which we won’t score 130 points. Let’s have fun. We had fun last year. I want Kai to be Kai – come out and play at the level we all know he can play.”

And letting Kidd do his job is part of the process.

“My job is to help,” he said. “And push. You heard him (Irving) say he wants to be coached, so it’s my job to push him to be great.”

Twitter: @ESefko