{"id":458672,"date":"2026-02-15T09:12:16","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T09:12:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/458672\/"},"modified":"2026-02-15T09:12:16","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T09:12:16","slug":"dallas-mavericks-star-kyrie-irving-to-injury-address-return-after-all-star-break","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/458672\/","title":{"rendered":"Dallas Mavericks Star Kyrie Irving To Injury Address Return After All-Star Break"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the Dallas Mavericks<\/a> head into the All-Star break at 19-35 and 12th in the Western Conference, the franchise\u2019s most pressing question remains unresolved: Will Kyrie Irving<\/a> return this season?<\/p>\n

The nine-time All-Star guard addressed his status Saturday during a Twitch livestream, saying he plans to clarify his recovery and availability immediately after the break.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll give you guys an update after the All-Star break,\u201d Irving said. \u201cWhether it\u2019s this year or next year, it doesn\u2019t really matter. I\u2019ll speak when the time is right.\u201d<\/p>\n

Irving has not appeared in a game this season after tearing his ACL on March 3, 2025. Since the day after that injury, the Mavericks are 26-48 in regular-season games \u2014 a stark indicator of how dramatically his absence has altered the team\u2019s trajectory.<\/p>\n

Kyrie Irving Makes On-Court Progress Amid Final Stages of Rehab<\/p>\n

Irving\u2019s recovery has advanced steadily. Sources told DallasHoopsJournal.com<\/a> that Irving has consistently engaged in workouts with assistant coach Phil Handy and participated in competitive one-on-one work with members of the coaching and development staff.<\/p>\n

During multiple recent workouts observed by DallasHoopsJournal.com<\/a>, Irving moved fluidly through sustained drills and live-ball sequences. He changed directions without hesitation and maintained explosiveness in game-simulation settings. While those sessions do not signal imminent clearance, they reflect a meaningful progression into the final phases of rehabilitation. <\/p>\n

Multiple sources told DallasHoopsJournal.com<\/a> that Irving is expected to be physically able to play after the All-Star break. That timeline aligns with conservative return-to-play benchmarks across the NBA. A 12-month recovery window following ACL surgery is widely viewed as allowing not just physical healing but full confidence in basketball movements. The Mavericks\u2019 first game following the break comes on Feb. 20 against the Minnesota Timberwolves \u2014 just shy of the one-year anniversary of Irving\u2019s injury.<\/p>\n

Irving acknowledged the mental strain of the process during his livestream.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not easy,\u201d Irving said. \u201cIt\u2019s not easy to come back from any injury, but you gotta be mentally, spiritually, physically ready. And the frustrating portion has been not being able to push myself to that brink, where you\u2019re just dog tired.\u201d<\/p>\n

Earlier in the season, Irving emphasized patience over deadlines.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, my advice, the best advice I got is just take your time. No timeline is going to be perfect. Don\u2019t compare it to anyone else and just enjoy the process,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Long-Term Vision Centers on Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flagg<\/p>\n

The broader context of Irving\u2019s return extends beyond this season.<\/p>\n

After trading Anthony Davis<\/a> in a move aimed at financial flexibility and draft capital, league sources told DallasHoopsJournal.com<\/a> that the Mavericks continue to see strong long-term potential in pairing Irving with rookie Cooper Flagg<\/a>. The two have yet to share the floor. Irving\u2019s injury occurred months before Dallas selected Flagg with the No. 1 overall pick, leaving the partnership rooted in projection.<\/p>\n

Before the injury, Irving was playing at an All-Star level. During the 2024\u201325 season, he averaged 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.6 assists in 50 games, earning his ninth All-Star selection while shooting 47.3% from the field and 40.1% from three-point range.<\/p>\n

Through 49 games this season, Flagg has averaged 20.4 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 4.1 assists while handling primary initiation responsibilities. Internally, Dallas views Flagg\u2019s playmaking as a way to allow Irving to operate more as an attacking scorer rather than a full-time organizer, sources said.<\/p>\n

For now, the timeline remains Irving\u2019s to define publicly.<\/p>\n

His update is expected shortly after the All-Star break. Whether that clarity points to a late-season return or a full reset toward 2026\u201327 will significantly shape the next phase of the Mavericks\u2019 direction.<\/p>\n

Latest Dallas Mavericks News & Trade Rumors<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As the Dallas Mavericks head into the All-Star break at 19-35 and 12th in the Western Conference, the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":458673,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5117],"tags":[45909,196,5047,147,5278,5,12672,55667,555,55353,49099,21101,55668,4,197,2071],"class_list":{"0":"post-458672","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-dallas-stars","8":"tag-acl-injury","9":"tag-dallas","10":"tag-dallas-mavericks","11":"tag-dallas-stars","12":"tag-dallasstars","13":"tag-hockey","14":"tag-kyrie-irving","15":"tag-mavericks-season-update","16":"tag-nba","17":"tag-nba-all-star-game","18":"tag-nba-injury-report","19":"tag-nba-news","20":"tag-nba-standings","21":"tag-nhl","22":"tag-stars","23":"tag-western-conference"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116073879512902938","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/458672","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=458672"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/458672\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/458673"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=458672"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=458672"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=458672"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}