Dallas Mavs' Kyrie Irving Ruled OUT vs. Memphis Grizzlies With Foot Injury; Latest Details
MEMPHIS — When the Dallas Mavericks submitted the official injury report for their 2:30 p.m. EST update, it included Kyrie Irving being added as questionable to play after the team's shootaround before being ruled out closer to tipoff.
"Kai's left foot sprain — he's out for tonight," Kidd said. "I think he did it in the game. This morning, he just felt a little discomfort. He came to shootaround and we listed him as questionable."
After the Mavs' win over the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, Irving shared the joy he felt playing his first home opener in Dallas but quickly acknowledged frustration with his performance. Irving is averaging 19.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 6.0 assists while shooting 39.0 percent from the floor and 16.7 percent from beyond the arc.
Dallas Mavericks superstar Kyrie Irving.
Andrew Dieb-USA TODAY Sports
After being limited in the preseason due to a groin injury, he wished he had more preparation games to be in better shape and get his balance in tune. He pointed out a miss-pattern in his jump shooting results, stating that he's missing short often, requiring him to get his legs right through working in the weight room.
"I tried my best to be present and keep a seriousness about myself just to get ready. For me, [I need to] get my legs underneath me," Irving said on Friday. "It's my third game. I wish I had more time in the preseason; just trying to get in better shape and get my balance underneath me.
"It's just a lot of shots that I'm missing short, and when you're missing short, you just got to continue to go into the weight room, continue to do the work that got you here, and continue to trust, and that's what I've been doing."
Irving was speaking jokingly but did mention that he's been "feeling it" lately being a 13-year veteran that didn't have a full preseason and training camp to prepare for the full grind of the regular season.
"We got practice tomorrow. Looking forward to it. Shout out to J-Kidd," Irving said on Friday. "13-year vet, man, I used that card a little bit in practice, man. 13 years. I'm feeling it. I'm feeling it. ... Like, I'm 13 years in, but it sets a precedent when we're lifting after games, and we're watching film together and breaking bread and doing things to help us jel more."
While the media only observes a small portion of any team's shootaround, Irving wasn't too active on the court. As you can see in the embedded video below, he was
During Irving's first media availability on the second day of the Mavs' training camp, he mentioned the goal of "peaking" at the proper time, both as a team and individually. With an early season injury, not taking a risk with health with a greater goal is undoubtedly the likeliest approach to expect from the All-Star guard.
"Physically, I'm great," Irving said early in training camp. "I'm taking my time in this training camp. It's my 13th season, so I've been through a few training camps, and my focus this year is being prepared and healthy and peaking at the right time."
With Irving being ruled out, the next chance for him to return to action will be Wednesday when the Mavs take on the Chicago Bulls at American Airlines Center.
