Doncic and Irving Are No Longer Teammates, So No 'Duo' to Rank
A look at why the premise of a Doncic-Irving duo doesn't hold up: the two were split in the trade that sent Doncic to the Lakers, and Irving missed all of last season recovering from ACL surgery.
Published: · Figures as of September 4, 2026
Asked: Is the Luka/AR duo the best in the league?
No such duo exists right now — Doncic and Irving haven't been teammates since the trade
The premise doesn't hold: Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving are not currently paired anywhere. Doncic plays for the Los Angeles Lakers, Irving for the Dallas Mavericks — the two clubs split them apart in the trade that sent Doncic to LA, and neither roster has both names on it today.
Where each stands:
- Doncic had an outstanding individual season for the Lakers last year (2025-2026): 33.5 points per game across 64 games, the team's leading scorer by a wide margin over LeBron James' 20.9. That's an MVP-caliber scoring season, but it's a solo act in Los Angeles, not part of a "duo" with Irving.
- Irving didn't play a single game for Dallas last season — he missed all 82 games recovering from ACL surgery. He's currently listed as probable, with an expected return around October 1, 2026, in time for training camp, and the report itself flags the intrigue of how he'll mesh with Cooper Flagg in the Mavericks backcourt once he's back — not with Doncic.
So there's nothing to rank as a "best duo" here: the two players you're asking about are on different rosters, and one of them hasn't taken the floor in over a year. If you're thinking of a specific current pairing — Doncic alongside a Lakers teammate, or Irving alongside Flagg once healthy — I can dig into that matchup instead.