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The news-making firing of Nico Harrison puts the Dallas Mavericks’ future under speculation by NBA fans and media. Harrison getting fired felt like the Mavericks looking to escape the Luka Doncic for Anthony Davis trade and attempting to focus on the future. Kyrie Irving suffered an injury last season that will see him missing many months this season, and fans assumed he may get shut down with the team’s early struggles. Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd said the opposite to the media and that Irving’s return should be expected: “No, everybody is doing their part to get back. Everybody wants to play. Everyone who is hurt, the progress is good reports. At some point, hopefully we’ll see Kai in a uniform. He wants to play. He’s working extremely hard mentally and physically to get back to help us.” Irving has publicly expressed a desire to return to team this season, but this came before the brutal start. Dallas has fallen into the bottom five teams and seems more likely to contend for a draft lottery pick more than a playoff spot. Davis dealing with injuries make it worse, but Kidd expects Kyrie back this season. Dallas May Be Better Without Kyrie One of the more interesting elements of this story goes back to the overall team building. This season is the final time Dallas owns their own first round draft pick before they go to other franchises based off past trades over the next few years. Nico Harrison foolishly only received one draft pick from the Los Angeles Lakers for Doncic to not replenish their picks there. Losing this season and getting a high draft pick via the lottery may be the best path to overall success. Rookie Cooper Flagg also needs more time and development, without having to worry about the pressure of winning to remain in the playoff race. Irving returning clearly makes the Mavericks better, but they may be too far out of playoff contention for it to matter. The ultimate prize of a play-in seed or just missing would make the franchise look worse. Kyrie’s health for next season is also important and adds unnecessary risks there. When Could Kyrie Irving Return? The torn ACL injury for Irving took place in March of this year before the postseason. Dallas has looked at January 2026 as the earliest possible time that Kyrie could return if everything goes perfectly in his rehab period. This is a best-case scenario, and it could easily come in February or March instead. The Mavericks must have a hot streak to turn the season around and feel like they have a chance to upset better teams if they do make the playoffs. Irving would still have unfair pressure to play at his best, despite coming off a potentially career-changing injury this soon.
