Kyrie Irving Does Not See NBA Past 40

Kyrie Irving said Monday he doesn’t see himself playing in the NBA at 42 or 43. The Mavericks guard told Christian Clark of The Athletic that the schedule, lifting, media work, social media, and gambling have made the league feel “less human” and “more robotic” than when he entered as the No. 1 pick in 2011. Irving missed all of 2025-26 while recovering from a torn ACL after playing 50 games the season before. He hasn’t played 70 games in a season since 2016-17. Dallas opens Wednesday against the Houston Rockets, and Kyrie sounds like he’s thinking more about life beyond basketball than chasing a long run into his 40s.