Dallas has a lineup that could be a threat to anyone in the West, especially by the time they gel for the playoffs: Anthony Davis, No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg, Klay Thompson, Dereck Lively II, P.J. Washington, and Daniel Gafford. However, it only comes together if Kyrie Irving is playing point guard.
Irving is going to miss most of next season recovering from a torn ACL, but could he return in time for the Mavericks to make a deep run? Irving threw some cold water on that idea during a streaming Q&A (hat tip HoopsHype).
“Don’t hold your breath on [a playoff return]. You know what I’m saying? That doesn’t mean I won’t be back, it’s just — I don’t want to make any predictions on when I’m going to be back. I just want to be back 150,000% better.”
Irving tore his ACL on March 3 and had surgery to repair his knee closer to the end of that month. While recovery times for ACL injuries vary, the average is approximately a little under a year. While that could mean Irving makes a return in time for the postseason, he’s handling this in a mature way, not setting a timeline and letting his body tell him when it’s time to get back on the court.
Kyrie’s comments reenforce that recovery, especially for a major injury, is fluid & comes w/ a subjective component from the athlete. Average time lost for ACL tears in the NBA is ~11 months but he shouldn’t return until he’s physically & mentally ready. I think he is smart to…
— Jeff Stotts (@InStreetClothes) July 6, 2025
The Mavericks have a solid guard pairing of D’Angelo Russell and Dante Exum, who can carry them through the regular season, although where that roster lands in a stacked Western Conference remains to be seen. If Irving is back and gets his legs under him, nobody is going to want to face this team — but Irving can’t rush back because of that. He has to make sure he’s right.
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