Kyrie Irving’s injury came as a blow to the Dallas Mavericks, who were dealing with the sudden departure of Luka Doncic to the LA Lakers last year. While the team confirmed he will miss the entire 2025-26 season, fans have questioned when the star guard will return and what it means for the Mavs organization. Mavs co-interim general manager Matt Riccardi answered some of those questions in a media interaction on Friday.

“I can’t wait to see him play basketball again. I didn’t realize how much I missed it till I started watching him again,” Riccardi said, per Noah Weber. “Just in awe of his talent level. But he’s been an incredible, amazing teammate. He’s been so good with the group and helping all these guys develop behind the scenes that the public doesn’t see. So, I’m really excited to get him back on the court, but he’s doing everything he can behind the scenes too for us,” he added.

While Kyrie Irving is officially done for the 2025-26 season, the Mavericks confirmed on February 18 that he hasn’t exactly stepped away from the team. For a player 11 months removed from ACL surgery, the physical progress has been encouraging. But just as telling has been his impact on the guys around him, particularly Cooper Flagg.​

Irving’s connection with fellow Duke alumnus Flagg has become one of the more compelling storylines of Dallas’ otherwise difficult season. Flagg has been candid about leaning on Irving during the low points. 

“I was driving home, and he had texted me,” Flagg told ESPN. “He was like, ‘Yo, just give me a call.’ He stepped in as like a great vet for me and was there giving me guidance because there were definitely times where I was shaken up. I’d never lost that much in my life. But just to hear him say that and tell me that I’m doing everything I need to be doing and just to stay with it and stay positive, it definitely helped me out a lot.”

In his absence, the Mavs have built their roster around rookie Flagg. Irving’s long-term ACL injury has seen the team lean into the 2025 No. 1 draft’s playmaking, trusting him to lead and initiate the offense. The team went as far as moving injury-prone Anthony Davis to Washington to clear space and build around him. While the plan is to bring in players who fit Flagg’s timeline, Irving’s return will unlock the roster’s full potential.

Mavs GM Sets Expectations for team with a healthy roster featuring Kyrie Irving

The Dallas Mavericks have struggled all season. Injuries to key players contributed, but a healthy Mavs team would have finished better than the 13th place they currently find themselves in the West. Many are expecting that a favorable draft and injury returns for absentees will make them challengers next season.

Riccardi shared in that optimism, asserting that “I think our expectation is to compete. We want to compete every single night, and we’re excited about next year. When the time comes, we’ll be ready to go. We feel like we’ve got a lot of really good pieces and a lot of really good players. Get them all back on the court, spend some time together this summer, and continue to develop and get better.”

Irving tore his ACL last season and has had surgery ever since. His return date was reportedly pushed into the 2026-27 season; however, Mavs Nation will be excited to learn that he was getting some post-practice work on Friday while being guarded by assistant coach Phil Handy.

He isn’t the only Mavs player out. Center Dereck Lively II has been a long-standing absentee and is not expected to feature this season. With making the postseason becoming more unrealistic, the Mavs hope to end the season with a few wins, and they face the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday, having lost their last two matchups