DALLAS — Kyrie Irving said Saturday that he is part of a rebuild with the Dallas Mavericks. He said it had been a long time since he was in that position at any point in his career.
Irving spoke after Dallas’ first training camp practice under Mavericks coach Dusty May. Irving is 34 years old and has not played since tearing the ACL in his left knee 18 months ago. On July 6, 2025, he re-signed with Dallas on a three-year, $119 million contract that includes a player option for 2027-28, after declining a $43 million player option for 2025-26. The Mavericks went 26-56 last season.
Dallas acquired Irving from Brooklyn in February 2023. A year later, the Mavericks reached the 2024 NBA Finals and lost to the Boston Celtics in five games.
Kyrie Irving On The Last Few Years In Dallas
Irving had talked with his family Friday about how the last few years had changed him and changed Dallas. He did not shy away from the hard parts.
“I was talking to my family about this yesterday, just reminiscing on the kind of the change in the last few years and how it’s impacted me and how it’s impacted just Dallas in general and just the fandom,” Irving said. “And I’m not going to shy away from saying it’s been a little chaotic at times inside the locker room as well as outside the locker room. Last year there was a game where P.J. was shooting a free throw and it was a little tough on him to kind of recalibrate after that because the fans were yelling stuff going back and forth, and I know we’re past that stage, but I’m just saying little instances where I think we all kind of just had to reset.”
On Feb. 2, 2025, Dallas traded Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers in a deal that brought back Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick. Irving tore his ACL the following month. He had averaged 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.6 assists in 50 games that season.
After the trade, fans at American Airlines Center regularly chanted “Fire Nico,” aimed at then-general manager Nico Harrison. The chants often came while Mavericks players were at the free-throw line. That included P.J. Washington in the fourth quarter of a Nov. 10, 2025, home loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. Irving did not name the game he was referring to. Dallas fired Harrison the next day.
“New faces being around here. A lot of guys that just want to come in and do the right thing. And I think I’m right on board with that,” Irving continued. “I’m in love with this place just because of how welcoming it was, not just from the franchise aspect, but also the fans, a lot of support around the city. And I just feel confident that whatever we’re putting on the floor this year will be the best of our ability. Excuse me, will do the best of our ability.”
“And we’re building something. And I’m not sure what exactly that looks like. Again, I’m just going to be honest about it,” Irving added. “But I think I’m just kind of turning the page and just looking forward to building something new, having these guys rally around each other, rally around them. They lean on me for leadership. I lean on them for energy and vice versa. And we just kind of put the past where it is and honestly reminisce when it’s time to do that.”
The Mavericks’ Roster And Front Office Turnover
Dallas traded Davis to the Washington Wizards on Feb. 4, 2026, in an eight-player deal. The Mavericks received two first-round picks and three second-round picks in the trade. Davis had played 29 games with Dallas across parts of two seasons.
The front office changed after the season. Masai Ujiri took over basketball operations on May 4, and Mike Schmitz became general manager. On May 19, Dallas and Jason Kidd agreed to part ways. The Mavericks hired May from Michigan the day before the draft, after he won the 2026 national championship there.
Most of the roster changed over the summer, too. In the 2026 draft, Dallas took Morez Johnson Jr. ninth overall. On July 8, the Mavericks acquired Santi Aldama and Marcus Sasser in a six-team trade. Eleven days later, they landed Zaccharie Risacher, the first overall pick in 2024, from Atlanta.
Kyrie Irving On Finishing His Career In Dallas
Irving expects the question about finishing his career in Dallas to come up several times this season. He talks it through with Ujiri, Schmitz, and the coaching staff.
“I feel like I’m going to be asked that question a few times throughout the year. I wish a lot of that was under my control, but I think it’s a collaborative effort here, and I’m mature enough to understand that experience I have in the league,” Irving said. “I can use that as just talking points and conversation points when I’m talking to Masai and also Mike and coaching staff. You see like there is a disparity in age. Everyone likes to make [a] deal out of it. Everyone on social media likes to talk about it. It’s actively part of every conversation, which I don’t mind.”
“Like I said, every fair criticism that we’re brought to this franchise is fair. I’m never going to shy away from that either,” Irving continued. “But I think my focus is just continuing to develop, continuing to put my best foot forward with these guys. When we’re out there on the floor, just have fun. And when we say have fun, it means compete at the highest level. We’re trying to win. Nobody here is just trying to throw the season away and say, hey, we have no expectations. We have high expectations for ourselves, and I have high expectations for my guys out there, and they can expect high things from me as well.”
Irving’s player option for 2027-28 lines up with the final season of his current deal.
Cooper Flagg is 19 years old, 15 years younger than Irving. Dallas won the 2025 draft lottery with 1.8% odds and took Flagg first overall. He won Rookie of the Year after averaging 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists in 70 games. Irving said the two have built camaraderie off the court, and that young players held mini camps and were in the gym all summer while he recovered.
“I just think the basketball community somehow forgets that when you have great players [on] one team and you have guys that are selfless and we’ve built some camaraderie off the court, me and Cooper, and especially young guys coming in, that will be part of our success,” Irving said. “We just got to see where the pieces fit and then live with the results on that end. And if anything changes, then we all talk about it and we amend some things. But, again, this is all transparent here. There’s nothing that’s off the table. Nothing’s hidden behind the scenes.”
“I’m not trying to sell stories to the media or anything. Anytime you guys ask me, I’m going to tell you where we are and how I feel, but also keep in mind that we do have a young team. They’re very impressionable,” Irving continued. “I’m not trying to bring any BS into the locker room or any rumors. My name in the trade mill and other guys in the trade mill as well. There’s too much of that in this league now. There’s way too much of that. It affects people’s mental health, little do we know. It affects people’s day-to-day jobs. In order to get the best team possible, as you want to see out there, we need everybody growing in the same direction, including our fans.”
Irving joked that it would help not to be reminded of his age every day. He called Flagg a young, budding superstar who is hungry to make his name known.
“Every day I wake up, kind of looking at this opportunity, not only to just play basketball, but I’m part of a restructure. I’m part of a rebuild. And it’s been a minute since I was in any situation like [that], in any position, any time in my career,” Irving said. “So there’s a lot of gratitude just for what we have and a lot of things that are still being written. And we do have a young, budding superstar that’s on this team that’s really hungry to make his name well known, and he already has.”
“So you have a direction that we’re heading in. And for me, it’s just to complement that direction, continue to be a leader, and continue to be one of the best players in the world,” Irving continued. “I think if I come in with that mindset, continue to be selfless, continue to prepare the best way I know how, we’ll be okay. And I don’t want to put any too high expectations right now because the words will get all scrambled and some people will run with it. But yeah, we do have some expectations that we’re looking forward to surprising people with as well. So next phase of my career is just still being written.”
Irving was the first overall pick in the 2011 draft and is a nine-time All-Star. Dallas opens the preseason against the Houston Rockets on Oct. 9 in Macao.
