NBA Rumors: From all indications, it seems Kyrie Irving should be near 100 percent by the time the Dallas Mavericks open training camp.
One thing has been clear this offseason, and it's that the Dallas Mavericks believe they are on the precipice of something special. After making a somewhat surprising run to the NBA Finals this past season, the Mavs continued their aggressive pursuit this offseason of surrounding Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving with upgraded pieces around them. Losing Derrick Jones Jr. in free agency, the Mavs were able to add Quentin Grimes, Spencer Dinwiddie, Klay Thompson, and Naji Marshall this summer.
Will that be enough to push the Mavs over the top in the Western Conference? That remains to be seen. Aside from the team's new supporting cast emerging as ideal fits alongside Luka and Kyrie, one of the other main factors in determining if the Mavs have another NBA Finals run in them will likely revolve around health. When healthy, Luka and Kyrie have been a lethal combo for Dallas.
After suffering an offseason injury, there was some concern that Kyrie was not going to be ready for the start of the season. However, those concerns can now be put to bed.
According to a recent report, after offseason hand surgery, Kyrie is on pace to be ready for the start of training camp.
How dangerous can the new-look Dallas Mavericks be?
This is all-around good news for a Dallas team that certainly has a new look. With four new rotational pieces they'll be introducing, it is going to be important for this team to get all the reps they can get. The last thing the Mavs need is to not have a full training camp to get acclimated with one another.
But assuming Kyrie and Luka will be ready and healthy for the start of camp, the new-look Mavs are going to have a good chance to hit the ground running by the time the start of the regular season arrives. With the moves Dallas made this offseason, how good can they be?
That could be a difficult question to answer at the moment but with the way they ended last year, there's going to be an expectation on this team to finish as a top 3 seed in the Western Conference. The Mavs should be good enough to compete with the likes of the Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Denver Nuggets.
Ultimately, it could come down to health and how well the pieces all fit together for Dallas.