The 33-year-old guard is taking his time on the way to recovery as he is about to play his 15th year.
After 14 seasons in the NBA, the nine-time All-Star is realizing the end of an era, especially in his remaining years to compete in the league.
Irving talked about his mortality competing in the following years, as it was already his fourth surgery in his entire career.
“I was saying it the other day in terms of my mortality,” Irving said during the media day. “I have to be pretty crazy at night to keep coming back after knee surgery, it’s my fourth one. I don’t take that for granted.”
Despite setbacks, the NBA champion still aimed to be one of the Hall of Famers who played for around 20 years, becoming someone that future generations could look up to.
“I know there’s gonna be a time where I look myself in the mirror and be honest… It’s a few years away — I’m trying to beat some of my predecessors and how long they played, whether it be 18, 19, 20 years.”
He also opened up about the challenges he faced in previous seasons, as he tried to balance competing at the highest level of basketball.
“My journey for the last few years [has been] falling… Sometimes the humanness gets into me in terms of the responsibility to do. I am not complaining about my job at all; it is just a lot when you’re dealing with life and trying to balance basketball. There are priorities that take precedence over basketball.”
As he makes progress rehabbing his left knee injury, he was not expected to play early in the season, and there is no specific timeline yet for his return.
The Dallas Mavericks floor general averaged 24.7 points, 4.8 boards, 4.6 assists, and shot 47.3% from the field.
