Mavericks star Kyrie Irving gave his honest thoughts about the trade with the Nets that brought him to Dallas.

Even without important pieces like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic, Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein and Dereck Lively II, both teams' role players simmered the beef between the ball clubs. The usually well-mannered Thunder were hit with multiple technical fouls. PJ Washington continued to poke the bear.

That decision forced the Thunder to stick close to the Mavericks' role players throughout the first quarter. Once Washington scored the first five points, Irving asserted himself and drained a 3-pointer before finishing at the basket with a finger roll to give the Mavericks an early 10-0 lead.

Alexander, Williams’ co-star who typically bears the brunt of OKC’s offensive weight on his shoulders, was the first to greet him, his hand extending from his camouflage sleeve.  “You good,

DALLAS (AP) — Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the NBA’s leading scorer at 31.6 points per game, missed his first game of the season against the Dallas Mavericks with a sore right wrist. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said Gilgeous-Alexander arrived at American Airlines Center and mentioned the injury.

The Dallas Mavericks got the upper hand on the Oklahoma City Thunder for the second time this season, though it was undermanned.