The Dallas Mavericks ushered in the Dustin May era for the first time on Wednesday. But Cooper Flagg meshing with the ex-Michigan coach wasn't the only thing on the mind of fans. Kyrie Irving made his return from a torn ACL against the Houston Rockets.
Fans got treated to vintage “Uncle Drew” in Irving's 2026-27 debut.
Irving banked this jump shot by driving to the key, then elevating himself over the defense to hit his first basket in nearly 600 days.
That basket cut the lead to 22-20 in favor of the Rockets. Irving previously went down hard back on March 3, 2025 and wound up missing the entire 2025-26 campaign with his knee tear.
May handed Irving nine minutes on the floor. Irving also grabbed two rebounds and dished one assist. But Houston started to pull away and jumped to a 56-36 lead.
This story will be updated.