Kyrie Irving, who underwent successful surgery to repair his torn ACL on March 26, sustained the injury late in the first quarter of the Mavericks' 122-98 loss to the Sacramento Kings on March 3. The typical recovery time for an ACL surgery like Irving's is six to 12 months.

After the latest PR debacle to come out of Dallas in the wake of the Luka Dončić trade (this time Nico Harrison continuing to trip over himself at every public turn to justify the deal), the Mavericks are perhaps trying to counter the negative vibes engulfing their franchise by throwing a little bit of good news out into the ether.

Kyrie Irving could be back earlier than expected, which is some much-needed good news for a down on their luck Mavericks franchise.