Kyrie Irving's Injury Status Revealed in Latest NBA Rumors on Mavs Star's Recovery from Knee Surgery

Dallas Mavericks star point guard Kyrie Irving is reportedly fully recovered from the torn ACL he suffered in March 2025, which cost him the entirety of last season.

"My understanding is Irving's rehab has gone amazing. There was a sense during last season that if the Mavericks were playing at a very competitive level, Irving could have potentially come back in December, January," ESPN's Shams Charania said during an appearance on The Stephen A. Smith Show (18:30 mark). "But given the way the season was going, it obviously didn't make sense for the Mavericks to rush Irving back onto the floor. But from my understanding, he's fully recovered 100 percent with that ACL tear from a couple seasons ago. He's been fully entrenched in the Maverick's plans this offseason."

There were plenty of rumors this offseason that LeBron James was hoping to pair up with Kyrie Irving in Cleveland, but those have been met with reports that the Mavs have zero interest in trading Irving.

James ultimately signed with the Philadelphia 76ers, creating a super team alongside Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, Jaylen Brown and V.J. Edgecombe. And Irving will remain in Dallas, where the Mavericks will finally get a look at how he pairs with young franchise cornerstone Cooper Flagg.

When healthy, the 34-year-old Irving has been fantastic for the Mavs, averaging 25.5 points and 5.1 assists per game in parts of three seasons. He helped lead them to the NBA Finals in the 2023-24 season, pairing with Luka Dončić.

Now he has a new running mate in Flagg, who just finished a Rookie of the Year campaign (21.0 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 4.5 APG, 1.2 SPG) and looks like a future superstar. A healthy Irving will help take some of the burden off Flagg's shoulders, at least on the offensive end.

If the Mavericks struggle and find themselves well out of playoff position before February's trade deadline, trading Irving—who has a player $42.4 million player option for the 2027-28 season and would be a free agent if he declined it—for young players and draft assets would make sense.

But for now, the Mavericks will head into the season with a healthy Irving, hoping he and Flagg prove to be an elite duo.