Kyrie Irving suffered a torn ACL Monday night in a devastating blow to his career and a further-spiraling Dallas Mavericks franchise.
Two of his most prominent former teammates reached out with support, including his former Mavericks running mate Luka Dončić, who was his teammate as recently as early February.
Dončić, who is now a Los Angeles Laker following one of the most scrutinized trades in sports history, applauded Irving on Instagram in the immediate aftermath of his injury, in which Irving remained in the game against the Kings to shoot free throws before being helped off the court.
At that point, the nature of Irving's injury wasn't clear — only that it looked significant.
Irving's former Cleveland Cavaliers teammate, LeBron James — who's now the other half of the Lakers' superstar tandem next to Dončić — also reached out on social media.
"Prayers sent up to Ky," James wrote.
Prayers sent up to Ky 🧙🏾🤞🏾!!! 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾
— LeBron James (@KingJames) March 4, 2025
Then came the bad news Tuesday morning. Irving's injury was, indeed, serious. Irving has a torn ACL in his left knee that will end his season and alter the nine-time All-Star's career at 32 years old.
Dončić again reached out with a message to Irving on social media.
"You will come back stronger mi hermano!" Dončić wrote alongside an image of himself and Irving from their playing days together.
It was a poignant message and image from Dončić to his friend and former teammate — and a painful reminder to Mavericks fans of just how bad things have become in the last four weeks.
