DALLAS — Dirk Nowitzki said Monday that the Dallas Mavericks have to build a roster that functions around Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flagg, in a phone interview with Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News.
Nowitzki’s read on the roster is that Dallas is rebuilding around Flagg, who won Rookie of the Year in his first season.
“He’s going to have veteran leadership around him. Kyrie [Irving’s] coming back after a year off,” Nowitzki said.
Irving has not played since March 3, 2025. He tore the ACL in his left knee nine minutes into a game against the Sacramento Kings and had reconstruction surgery on March 27.
Kyrie Irving’s Missed Season
The Mavericks announced on Feb. 18 that Irving would not return during 2025-26. He was targeting the start of this season instead.
Irving said in a statement released by the team that the decision was not easy but was the right one, and that he was looking forward to coming back stronger. His agent, Shetellia Riley Irving, told ESPN’s Shams Charania that the decision was about Irving being fully healthy and giving himself the best chance to chase a championship.
Former coach Jason Kidd had been more optimistic earlier in the season. Kidd said in November that he hoped to see Irving on the court during the 2025 calendar year, then said on Jan. 22 that a return would probably come after the All-Star break.
Dallas is 75-53 with Irving in the lineup since he arrived in a February 2023 trade with the Brooklyn Nets, and 42-75 in the games he has missed. The Mavericks went 26-56 last season.
What Kyrie Irving Was Before The Injury
Irving played 50 games in 2024-25 and averaged 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.6 assists. He shot 47.3% from the field and 40.1% from three, and added 1.3 steals per game.
Across 128 games with Dallas, he has averaged 25.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 5.1 assists in 35.9 minutes. That is the second-highest scoring average in franchise history among players with at least 100 games, and his .917 free throw percentage is the highest in team history over that span.
Irving is a nine-time All-Star entering his 15th season. He won a championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016 and reached the 2024 NBA Finals with Dallas, a five-game loss to the Boston Celtics. He turned 34 in March.
He declined a $43 million player option in July 2025 and signed a three-year deal worth $118.5 million that includes a player option for 2027-28. His base salary this season is $39.5 million.
Michael Porter Jr. said last week that he played pickup with Irving a day earlier.
Fitting Players Around Kyrie Irving And Cooper Flagg
Dallas added five international players this summer through trades and the draft.
“For me, it’s always about finding the right mix of good players that play off of each other, especially with Kyrie coming back. He’s an incredible guard, ball-dominant. Cooper’s gonna have the ball in his hands a lot,” Nowitzki explained. “Can you impact the game with your IQ? Can you cut at the right time? Can you get open? Can you spot up? Can you shoot? I think that’s the thing around some of these two great scorers and players like Cooper and Kyrie.”
Flagg averaged 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists over 70 games and shot 29.5% from three.
“I like some of the additions,” Nowitzki added. “It’s all about finding the right mix who can play off of Kyrie and Cooper.”
The Mavericks open training camp before Sept. 29 and play the Houston Rockets on Oct. 9 and Oct. 11 at The Venetian Arena in Macau, China, in the NBA Global Games.
