After rehabbing an ACL tear during the entirety of the 2025-26 NBA season, former Duke point guard Kyrie Irving is ready to get back on the floor. Now fully recovered, Irving indicated his eagerness to prove himself at the highest level once more. During media day with the Dallas Mavericks, Irving elaborated on that stance.
“I’m ready to go out there and kick some butt," he said.
“I know that naysayers or some of the questions around where I’m going to be are going to be inevitable. But for me, I have the confidence of a champion. This is a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately type of league, and everybody wants to see it up close. So, I’m looking forward to being able to lace up my shoes and being on the court with my teammates and show everybody what I got
again. It’s just like riding a bike."
A former NBA champion and a nine-time All-Star, Irving has experienced plenty of success at the NBA level. In 779 games over 14 seasons, Irving holds career averages of 23.7 points, 5.6 assists, 4.1 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 0.4 blocks. He's also played with some of the league's best talent, including former teammates of LeBron James, Jayson Tatum, Kevin Durant, James Harden and Anthony Davis. This fall, Irving will be able to add his schoolmate Cooper Flagg to that list, as the two await their first season playing together.
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This article originally appeared on Duke Wire: Duke's Kyrie Irving aiming to silence doubters following ACL recovery
