Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving has undergone successful surgery on a torn left ACL suffered earlier this month, per ESPN's Shams Charania. The surgery reportedly took place on Wednesday at Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City.
Irving went down during the Mavericks' loss to the Sacramento Kings on March 3 after his left knee bent awkwardly while driving to the hoop. He was later ruled out for the season.
The day after the game, Irving went on Instagram Live to say that he was doing alright.
<em>"It hasn't been 48 hours since I tore my ACL, but the recovery process already started mentally, spiritually, emotionally," Irving said. "I just wanted to let you guys know I'm OK, and I will be OK moving forward. It does suck a lot, I ain't gonna lie to you guys. This one stings for sure."</em>
Irving's surgery kicks off a long road to recovery for the 33-year-old guard. Irving has suffered injuries to that left knee before: In 2015, Irving underwent surgery to repair a fracture left knee cap, and later had the screws removed in 2018.
The injury was the latest setback for the Mavs, in what has been a very long couple of months for the team. Dallas has lost key players like Dereck Lively II and Daniel Gafford to injury; in February, the Mavericks traded star Luka Dončić for Anthony Davis, but Davis got injured in his debut. (Davis made a limited return to the court earlier this week.)
In the weeks since Irving's injury, the short-handed Dallas has lost eight of its past 11 games.
