DALLAS — Kyrie Irving said Friday he has no restrictions entering training camp. The Dallas Mavericks held media day at American Airlines Center, and practices under coach Dusty May begin Saturday.
Irving tore the ACL in his left knee March 3, 2025, against the Sacramento Kings at American Airlines Center. He made his ninth All-Star team in 2025, weeks before the injury, and averaged 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.6 assists, and 1.3 steals in 50 games that season. He shot 47.3% from the field and 40.1% from 3-point range in 36.1 minutes a night.
Irving expects ongoing conversations with the medical staff about back-to-backs, even without restrictions. He also described getting past the fear of whether he would come back the same player. Dallas plays its first preseason game Oct. 9 against the Houston Rockets at The Venetian Arena in Macao.
“No restrictions,” Irving said. “Obviously, there’ll be some conversations with the medical staff about back-to-backs and just the quality of where I am, just being honest day-to-day and just having that fluid communication. I think that’s most important. A lot of new faces, but we do have a solid foundation built here. And I trust that not only medical staff, but my teammates, upper management, everyone’s gonna give me support that I need.”
“From a mental standpoint, coming back from a traumatic injury is not the easiest thing to overcome, but no excuses,” Irving continued. “I think I was built for this at a very young age, being able to put it in perspective with just the injury happening, getting past kind of the mental hurdle of just the fear or the scary moments of just, am I gonna be back the same? Am I gonna be better?”
Kyrie Irving On Setbacks During His Recovery
Dallas ruled Irving out for the 2025-26 season Feb. 18, about 11 and a half months after the injury. He turned 34 in March and is entering his 16th season.
The setbacks taught Irving he could not come back alone. He recalled times last season when he thought he was close to returning to his teammates and had to be pulled off the court instead.
“So I’m grateful for all the time that I had, a lot of rest,” Irving explained. “It’s been about 18 months, 19 months. I think that’s great for a 34-year-old coming off a torn [ACL], in my opinion. But I think throughout the year too, I had moments where I was really pressing and I had a few setbacks, unfortunately. And the times where I thought I was gonna be able to be out there with my teammates, I had to be removed from the court. And I had to take some rest and learn what rest actually is and healing. And I think all of that just really taught me that I’m not in it alone. I need a great team around me. I need great support. And that’s what I got here.”
“I know, again, we’re gonna reiterate just the new faces, new regime change. That stuff doesn’t really matter to me,” Irving added. “I think for me, I see humans in front of me that love the franchise, love the players, wanna come in and put their best mark on the franchise as well. And I’m at one of the driver’s seats. I’m not the only driver here. We have a few drivers, a few leaders, which I’m grateful I could always lean on.”
Irving organized a minicamp for teammates at the PLYRS UNTD Performance Center in Los Angeles this month. The Mavericks shared photos from those workouts Sept. 18, and Irving had given the NBPA input on the building’s renovation before it opened Aug. 4.
Irving called the runs there against All-Stars and All-Defensive players the refresher he needed after a year and a half away. He also pointed out that winning at that level takes a full team around him.
“The best thing as well this past summer was us starting PLYRS UNTD, us being able to be in LA together, a bunch of my peers there,” Irving said. “You’re running into guys that are All-Stars, All-Defensive teams. And I needed that as a refresher, as a reminder that not only do I belong here, but I also can dominate. And I know that domination just doesn’t happen alone. You need a full team with you.”
Masai Ujiri On Kyrie Irving’s Health
Mavericks president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri spoke before Irving on Friday. Every player attended Irving’s camp in Los Angeles for three or four days, according to Ujiri, and Irving put one together more than once this summer.
Irving’s attitude has matched his reputation from the day Ujiri walked into the building, the executive noted. The two had a relationship before Ujiri arrived in Dallas, which Ujiri credited with making the transition easier.
“Kyrie has had a great, great summer,” Ujiri said. “From day one, when I stepped into this gym, just his attitude, I think everybody talks about it from his time here in Dallas, and I saw nothing but that. He’s working out, being present, dialogue, everything that we’ve hoped with Kyrie. I have had a previous relationship with Kyrie, which makes it a little bit easier, but he’s been nothing but a leader.”
Irving is “right there” in terms of health, according to Ujiri, who pointed to the energy Irving brought to the team’s photo shoot Friday morning. Ujiri took over basketball operations May 4 and remains curious to see Irving play alongside Cooper Flagg.
“He hasn’t played any competitive game in terms of an NBA game yet,” Ujiri explained. “But even this morning, taking pictures, his spirit is incredible, and I’m proud to have a guy like that with that kind of talent on our team. And I said it when I took the job here, the uniqueness of seeing what Kyrie, Cooper, that combination could do with all the players we have, with Dusty. Yeah, I’m curious to see what that looks like.”
The Mavericks play Houston again in Macao on Oct. 11, then close the preseason at home against the New Orleans Pelicans on Oct. 14 and the Atlanta Hawks on Oct. 16. May coaches his first regular-season game Oct. 21 at Houston, with tip-off at 7:30 p.m. CT.
