Kyrie Irving shutdown slams Mavericks with brutal blow and surprising relief

Earlier this week, the Dallas Mavericks officially pulled the plug on Kyrie Irving's season and entered full tank mode by shutting him down for the rest of the 2025-26 season. This move was a mutual decision, as Dallas is giving Irving some extra time to fully recover from his ACL tear while focusing on the future with him and Cooper Flagg as their superstars.

While Irving not playing a single game this season is crushing for some fans, as every Mavericks fan misses seeing Irving play, it's not the bad news that it seems like on the surface. Dallas needs to bottom out in the standings anyway, so they can land a high draft pick to pair with Cooper Flagg. This year's draft class is stacked, and the Mavericks will have plenty of elite players to choose from, depending on where they pick in the draft.

On top of the obvious good news that comes with tanking, it should be music to Mavericks fans' ears that Irving will continue his rehab process with Dallas.

Kyrie Irving and the Mavericks are in full sync

"Irving will continue his rehabilitation under the supervision of the Mavericks’ medical and performance staff for the remainder of the season," the Mavericks stated.

This shows that Irving and the Mavericks are fully aligned as he works back from this torn ACL, and this is a great sign for things to come. Rather than shutting down Irving without his say, they worked with him and came to a resolution.

Things could've gone haywire, especially if Dallas and Irving disagreed on when he should come back, but that wasn't even close to what happened. Irving has been working with the Mavericks on a return for months now, and their constant collaboration led them to this decision to prolong his return.

It wasn't an easy one, but Irving seems locked in on being a Maverick for now, and beyond.

"This decision wasn’t easy, but it’s the right one," Irving said. "I am grateful for the Mavericks organization, my teammates and our fans for their continued support throughout the process. I am looking forward to coming back stronger next season. The belief and drive I have inside only grows."

Irving is hungry to play once again, and his patience will pay off in the long run.

Dallas is 19-35 on the year, and with a trip to the playoffs looking impossible, there was no reason to bring him back. The only benefit would've been building some early chemistry with Flagg, but they'll have plenty of time to do that next season. Irving still has two years remaining on his contract after this one, and he has shown no signs of wanting to play elsewhere.

This loyalty comes even after missing the playoffs in three of his first four seasons with the team (assuming Dallas doesn't make the playoffs this season), and the Mavericks are truly in a great spot to build something special.

Despite the joy Mavericks fans would've experienced by seeing Irving suit up this season, both sides made the right decision by pushing his comeback until next season. There are obviously two sides to the coin when it comes to him not playing this season, but Dallas is in a good spot as they approach the 2026-27 season.