Kyrie Irving tore his ACL in his left knee in March against the Sacramento Kings, a brutal blow to a Mavericks team that had a lot of brutal blows in the second half of last season. To that point, all of Dallas' injuries were minor enough to clear up over the summer, but Irving's injury would be a snag in the team's 2-3 window to compete.
All reports to this point in the offseason said that Irving was projected to return in January or February, with head coach Jason Kidd even stating Irving could be ahead of schedule a month or so ago. However, Irving wants people to pump the brakes.
READ MORE: Lakers’ Luka Doncic sends message to Mavericks’ Kyrie Irving
Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving
Feb 27, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) reacts after scoring against the Charlotte Hornets during the second half at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images
On one of his recent streams, Irving was asked if he'll be back by the playoffs, to which he responded, "Don’t hold your breath on that. Doesn't mean that I won't be back, I just don't want to make any predictions on when I'll be back. I just want to be back 150,000% better. I’m taking my time right now to really get healthy, I'm taking my time to get my body right, other parts or portions of my body... I just want to be back out there.”
Kyrie Irving if he’ll be back for playoffs:
“Don’t hold your breath on that… I just want to be back 150,000% better. I’m taking my time right now to really get healthy… I just want to be back out there.”
(Via Kyrie’s stream) #NBA pic.twitter.com/tVZDLAiWpY
— Swish Access (@SwishAccess) July 6, 2025
Barring a setback, Irving should be back well before the playoffs, but he is a smaller 33-year-old guard coming off a major knee injury. It's going to take time for him to get back to form, if he does at all.
His recovery is the main reason Dallas sought out D'Angelo Russell in free agency, who can help hold the team steady until Irving returns. That's also why they wanted to bring back Dante Exum. Neither could replace Irving's impact, but they can be solid playmakers to get the talented frontcourt involved.
READ MORE: Lakers’ LeBron James reacts to Dallas Mavericks’ big loss to team
Stick with MavericksGameday for more FREE coverage of the Dallas Mavericks throughout the offseason
Follow MavericksGameday on Twitter and Austin Veazey on Twitter