The Dallas Mavericks announced on Wednesday that Kyrie Irving, the nine-time All-Star, will not return during the 2025-26 season, ending months of speculation about whether the veteran guard could make a late-season comeback from a torn ACL he suffered in March 2025.
Irving is now expected to return for the Mavericks at the start of the 2026-27 season.
“This decision wasn’t easy, but it’s the right one,” Irving said in a statement released by the team. “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 grow.”
Irving’s agent and stepmother, Shetellia Riley Irving, addressed the decision in comments to ESPN NBA analyst Shams Charania, saying the decision is about Irving being fully healthy and giving himself the best opportunity to compete for a championship when he does return.
“This is about Kyrie being 1,000% when he comes back and giving himself the best chance to chase a championship next season,” she told Charania.
The announcement comes two days before Dallas is set to resume its season after the recent All-Star break. It will be the first time in Irving’s 15-year NBA career that he will miss an entire season. He injured the ACL in his left knee in March of 2025, and underwent reconstructive surgery later that month.
For a Mavericks squad sitting at 19-35 and riding a nine-game losing streak — the franchise’s longest in 28 years — the news is significant for a team outside playoff contention. The Mavericks are already well out of playoff contention following last year’s trade of Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers.
While the Mavericks acquired former All-Star Anthony Davis for Doncic in the heavily scrutinized trade, that tenure was short-lived, as Davis was traded to Washington earlier this month, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
The team has since anchored its future on the success of rookie Cooper Flagg, the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. Co-interim GM Michael Finley has praised the relationship forming between Irving and the rising star from Duke, adding that Irving has embraced a “mentorship role.”
Irving, 33, has averaged 23.4 points, 5.6 assists and 4.1 rebounds across his career. Since arriving in Dallas during the 2022-23 season, the Mavericks have gone 75-53 with him in the lineup – and 42-75 without him. The split underscores Irving’s impact on the team’s performance.
The Mavericks said that Irving will remain “actively engaged” with the team for the rest of the season.