The Dallas Mavericks have been outwardly optimistic about the potential for Kyrie Irving to return to action on the early side of the typical recovery timeline that comes with an ACL tear. The veteran point guard,

Irving, who already underwent successful surgery shortly after, has endured multiple significant knee injuries and procedures throughout his career, one in 2015 after fracturing his kneecap during the NBA Finals, and another in 2018 to remove screws in the same knee.

It isn't Irving's first time battling through a lengthy recovery process. Earlier in his career he fractured his kneecap while playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals and he didn't return until December of the following season.