Mavericks GM Nico Harrison provides surprising Kyrie Irving surgery update
After general manager Nico Harrison shockingly traded five-time All-NBA First Team guard Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers midseason — not even a year removed from Dallas' first NBA Finals appearance since 2011 — Irving saw his minutes and responsibilities spike. Just a month after the move, he tore the pesky knee ligament, effectively dooming the Mavericks' playoff chances.
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In exchange for Doncic and big men Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris, the Mavericks acquired 10-time All-Star center/power forward Anthony Davis — who got hurt immediately — shooting guard Max Christie and L.A.'s 2029 first round draft pick.
This spring, Dallas advanced to the play-in tournament but missed the playoffs proper, stumbling into this year's draft lottery. Thanks to sheer dumb luck, the Mavericks nabbed the No. 1 pick and the right to select Duke phenom Cooper Flagg.
Now, Harrison has offered a surprising update on Irving's health, per Underdog Sports.
"Kyrie's ahead of schedule but we kind of knew he would be," Harrison offered, "but we don't want him to rush it as much as he wants to rush it."
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MORE NEWS:Cooper Flagg trainer gets honest about Mavericks opponents' defense
Earlier this summer, despite his questionable health for the 2025-26 season, Irving declined his $43 million player option for next year and inked a three-year, $119 million free agent deal to stay with Dallas through 2027-28. Irving has a player option for the last season on the deal, when the already injury-prone Duke product will be 35.
When healthy, Irving proved characteristically effective for Dallas. He remains one of the league's elite scoring guards.
In 50 available bouts for Dallas last season, the 6-foot-2 pro averaged 24.7 points on .473/.401/.916 shooting splits, 4.8 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.5 blocks a night.
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Presumably, a Mavericks core of a healthy Irving, Davis, and Flagg — flanked by vets Klay Thompson (now far past his All-NBA prime), Dereck Lively, PJ Washington, Daniel Gafford, Naji Marshall, and Christie — could be at least a competitive playoff out in the chippy Western Conference.
But health issues for Irving and Davis may limit Dallas' playoff ceiling.
Irving hasn't played more than 60 games since 2018-19. Since then, Irving has missed an average of 33.5 bouts a year.
Beyond an anomalous 76-game season in 2023-24, the 32-year-old Davis has struggled with his health since 2019-20. The 6-foot-10 Kentucky product has been shelved for an average of 28.2 games a season.
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MORE NEWS: Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg's Summer League grade leaves major room for improvement
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