SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Kyrie Irving returned to action for the Dallas Mavericks against the Utah Jazz on Monday night after missing 12 games with a bruised right heel.
Irving had been sidelined since injuring his heel against Portland on Dec. 8, and the Mavericks went 6-6 during his absence.
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said Irving will not be facing a minutes restriction. The plan is to get him reacclimated to his normal routine enough to ease the load Luka Doncic has carried without Irving.
Doncic is averaging 37.1 minutes per game this season – nearly three minutes more than his career average.
“That helps when you have (Irving) back and you get more bodies back,” Kidd said. “We would like to get (Doncic’s) minutes down, but if you ask him, he’s fine where he’s at. So we’ll figure it out.”
Irving is averaging 23.0 points and 5.2 assists through 17 games this season. He has struggled to stay healthy, missing a total of 16 games so far due to various ailments. Before injuring his heel, Irving sat out three games with a sprained left foot in November and missed a game with right foot soreness in early December.
Irving’s return on the first day of 2024 gives Kidd optimism that Dallas is turning a corner with the health of its roster.
“Our health has been tested here,” Kidd said. “Hopefully we are trending in the right direction of getting healthy.”
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