In the latest installment of Ethical Tanking Theater, the Dallas Mavericks (19-35) announced on Wednesday that Kyrie Irving would miss the remainder of the 2025-26 season as he continues to recover from his ACL reconstruction surgery, which he underwent in 2025.
The team said in a press release that “Irving has made steady progress in rehabilitation and will remain actively engaged with the team through the remainder of the season.”
“This decision wasn’t easy, but it’s the right one,” Irving said. “I am grateful for the Mavericks organization, my teammates and our fans for their continued support throughout the process. I am looking forward to coming back stronger next season. The belief and drive I have inside only grows.”
There was some hope that Irving would return to the court sometime this season after suffering the knee injury that ended his 2024-25 season on March 3 in a 122-98 loss to the Sacramento Kings. The normal recovery time for ACL reconstruction is usually 9-12 months, and here we sit on Wednesday, 11-plus months since Irving crumpled to the ground in the second quarter of that loss.
This news should be viewed through the lens of player health and safety, despite the Mavericks’ current record and downward trajectory. Irving will turn 34 next month, and erring on the side of caution is the only smart thing to do with a player of his caliber and importance to the team. The long end of the normal recovery window would put Irving back on the court sometime in March, and the season will be over in April for these Mavs.
Irving averaged 25.6 points per game in his first full season with the Mavericks and 24.7 before his injury in 2024-25. He shot better than 40% from 3-point range in both his seasons in a Mavs’ uniform.
Fans have been anxious to see how Irving’s game will fit with Cooper Flagg in his rookie-year ascendancy, but they’ll have to wait until year two for that now, when the team’s war chest will hopefully be restocked with another high draft pick in the stellar 2026 NBA Draft. Irving may have been brought here to play Robin to Luka Dončić‘s Batman, but now it appears he’ll come back for 2026-27 as a veteran leader in a young, up-and-coming reboot scenario.
This decision is in the best interest of the player and the team in this case, but it will no doubt be cast as a “tank move” among NBA fans throughout the league. When the loudest cries are pronounced, just be sure to check whose store-bought jersey the one making the call is wearing.
“I wanted to send a huge shoutout to all of my brothers and sisters out there who’ve torn their ACL or gotten injured doing what they love to do every day,” Irving continued in the team release. “Thank you for the inspiration. No fear!”