{"id":41404,"date":"2026-02-19T02:30:23","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T22:30:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/en\/?p=41404"},"modified":"2026-02-18T23:12:42","modified_gmt":"2026-02-18T19:12:42","slug":"kyrie-irving-out-for-season-acl-recovery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/en\/kyrie-irving-out-for-season-acl-recovery\/","title":{"rendered":"Kyrie Irving Out for Season to Fully Recover from ACL Tear"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"background: #f7fafc; padding: 15px;\">\n<p><strong>Quick Read<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Kyrie Irving will miss the entire 2025-26 NBA season for full recovery from a torn ACL.<\/li>\n<li>The injury occurred on March 3, 2025, with surgery on March 26, 2025.<\/li>\n<li>Irving&#8217;s agent, Shetellia Riley Irving, confirmed the decision on February 18, 2026.<\/li>\n<li>The Dallas Mavericks are 10th in the Western Conference with a 19-35 record.<\/li>\n<li>Irving signed a three-year, $119 million contract with the Mavericks in July 2025.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><b>DALLAS (Azat TV) \u2013<\/b> Dallas Mavericks point guard Kyrie Irving has been officially ruled out for the remainder of the 2025-26 NBA season, a decision made to allow him full recovery from a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee sustained nearly a year ago. The announcement, confirmed by his stepmother and agent Shetellia Riley Irving to <em>ESPN<\/em> on Wednesday, February 18, 2026, solidifies his absence and shifts focus to his return for the 2026-27 season.<\/p>\n<p>Irving, who will turn 34 in March, suffered the season-ending injury on March 3, 2025, during a game against the Sacramento Kings when he accidentally stepped on Kings center Jonas Valan\u010di\u016bnas\u2019 foot. He underwent successful surgery on March 26 in New York to repair the structural damage. Despite the lengthy recovery, the Mavericks organization and Irving agreed that delaying his return until next season was the optimal path to ensure he is 100% ready to compete for a championship.<\/p>\n<h2>Kyrie Irving&#8217;s Season-Ending Decision<\/h2>\n<p>The decision to sit out the current season was described by Irving as &#8216;not easy, but it was the right one.&#8217; In a statement issued by the Mavericks, Irving expressed gratitude for the team&#8217;s support and his determination to come back stronger. &#8216;The belief and drive I have inside only grows,&#8217; he stated. His agent, Shetellia Riley Irving, emphasized the commitment to his complete health, telling <em>ESPN<\/em>, &#8216;This is about Kyrie being 1000% when he comes back and giving himself the best chance to chase a championship next season.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>On a Twitch stream over All-Star weekend, Irving shared insights into his recovery, acknowledging the mental, spiritual, and physical toll. &#8216;It&#8217;s not easy to come back from any injury, but you gotta be mentally, spiritually, physically ready &amp; the frustrating portion has been not being able to push myself to that brink, where you\u2019re just dog tired,&#8217; he commented. He also took a moment to send a shout-out to others who have experienced similar injuries, expressing solidarity.<\/p>\n<h2>Mavericks&#8217; Playoff Hopes Without Irving<\/h2>\n<p>Irving&#8217;s absence has significantly impacted the Dallas Mavericks&#8217; performance this season. Currently holding a 19-35 record and sitting in 10th place in the Western Conference standings after the All-Star break, the team has struggled without his elite shooting and playmaking abilities. Irving, a nine-time All-Star, averaged 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game during the 2024-25 NBA season before his injury. His career 3-point shooting percentage stands at 39%, a crucial offensive element the Mavericks have lacked.<\/p>\n<p>The team&#8217;s challenges were further underscored by their recent trading of former Mavericks center Anthony Davis to the Washington Wizards in early February for salary relief and draft capital. Irving and Davis had played only 25 minutes together in Dallas. The Mavericks control their first-round pick in this year\u2019s draft, and with a current nine-game losing streak, they are reportedly hopeful for lottery luck, reminiscent of their 1.8% chance to land the No. 1 pick in May.<\/p>\n<h2>Irving&#8217;s Road to Recovery and Future Outlook<\/h2>\n<p>Irving signed a three-year, $119 million contract with the Mavericks in July 2025, a deal negotiated by his agent and Mavericks officials that kept him out of free agency. He is slated to earn $39.5 million next season and holds a $42.4 million player option for the 2027-28 season. His commitment to the team, even while rehabilitating, signals a long-term mutual investment between the player and the franchise.<\/p>\n<p>Despite not being on the court, Irving has remained engaged with the league. He spoke highly of rookie Cooper Flagg on his Twitch stream, praising the 19-year-old&#8217;s performance. &#8216;Cooper is just an amazing player &amp; that\u2019s not even just gassing it,&#8217; Irving said. &#8216;He\u2019s doing things that some of the greats, even before him, didn\u2019t do. He\u2019s chasing history.&#8217; While Irving expressed admiration, the two will not share the court this season due to Irving&#8217;s recovery.<\/p>\n<p><em>Kyrie Irving&#8217;s decision to prioritize a full recovery over an early return underscores the increasing emphasis on player longevity and health in professional sports, suggesting a strategic long-term commitment from both the athlete and the franchise, despite immediate competitive setbacks for the Mavericks.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving will miss the entire 2025-26 NBA season to ensure full recovery from a torn ACL sustained last March, his agent confirmed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":-1,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"googlesitekit_rrm_CAow5Nm1DA:productID":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[16730,9560,10014,14162,3219],"class_list":["post-41404","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sport","tag-acl-injury","tag-basketball","tag-dallas-mavericks","tag-kyrie-irving","tag-sports-news"],"featured_image_url":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/kyrie-irving-dallas-mavericks.jpg","_embedded":{"wp:featuredmedia":[{"id":-1,"source_url":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/kyrie-irving-dallas-mavericks.jpg","media_type":"image","mime_type":"image\/jpeg"}]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41404","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41404"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41404\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41404"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41404"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azat.tv\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41404"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}