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Kyrie Irving Emphatically Denies Retirement Talk After Season-Ending Injury

Irving addressed fans the day after tearing his ACL.

Eva Geitheim

Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving.
Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving. / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images
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Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving devastatingly tore his ACL during the Mavericks' loss to the Sacramento Kings on Monday. The nine-time All-Star was injured during the first quarter and was seen limping and receiving help on the court, but still managed to still take his two free throw attempts before exiting the game. He will now miss the remainder of the season.

Irving went on Instagram Live the day after the injury and made it clear that he will be returning, and has no plans to retire even with the injury.

"I will be back and I will be better." Irving said.

“This is not the end of the story," Irving continued. "It's just the beginning of a new chapter.”

Irving also expressed his gratitude for all the fans and people that have sent him messages since suffering the injury.

'Just wanted to hop on here and say 'thank you' to the good energy sent not only my way, but my family's way," Irving said. "This one hurts, for sure. It hurts. It's painful to deal with this at this point."

Along with many fans, former teammates Kevin Love, LeBron James and Luka Doncic are among the players that have Irving kind messages in the wake of his injury.

The 32-year-old's 14th NBA season will now come to an end. Prior to the injury, Irving has averaged 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game this season.

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Eva Geitheim
EVA GEITHEIM

Eva Geitheim is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in December 2024, she wrote for Newsweek, Gymnastics Now and Dodgers Nation. A Bay Area native, she has a bachelor's in communications from UCLA. When not writing, she can be found baking or re-watching Gilmore Girls.

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