May 28, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) reacts against the Minnesota Timberwolves during the fourth quarter of game four of the western conference finals for the 2024 NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Kyrie Irving shares cryptic injury update

Originally posted on Dallas Mavericks on SI
By Austin Veazey | Last updated Jul 6, 2025 1:01 PM ET

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.

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.

This article first appeared on Dallas Mavericks on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: