Nico Harrison shares first statement on Kyrie Irving after superstar's season-ending injury: "Same ferocity in him that I saw in Kobe"

Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison released a statement on Tuesday on the knee injury that abruptly cut Kyrie Irving's season. He paid tribute to their All-Star guard's work ethic and dedication, likening it to that of the late NBA great Kobe Bryant, while expressing hope for a speedy recovery for Irving.

ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania shared Harrison's statement on X, a day after Irving tore his ACL while driving through the lane and getting fouled early in their game against the Sacramento Kings.

Part of the statement read:

"His work ethic and absolute dedication to his craft, it’s cut from the cloth of greats. I know it, I lived it, and I see the same ferocity and passion in him that I saw in Kobe."

Reminiscent of what Bryant did when he tore his Achilles in 2013, Kyrie Irving shot his free throws first before being carried out to the locker room. It was later confirmed that he suffered a torn ACL and was ruled out for the rest of the ongoing NBA season.

Irving's injury comes at a time when the Mavericks are regrouping after surprisingly trading Luka Doncic to the LA Lakers last month, for a package that included fellow All-Star Anthony Davis.

At the time of his injury, the 32-year-old former Duke star was averaging 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.3 steals in 50 games for the Mavericks, who are currently 10th in the Western Conference with a 32-30 record.

Now with Irving out, Dallas, which made it to the NBA Finals last season, is reportedly contemplating on shutting down Davis, out with a thigh injury, for the rest of the season as well, possibly ending its playoff hopes.

Nico Harrison bullish of pairing of Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis

In making sense of the trade that sent Luka Doncic to the LA Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis, Nico Harrison said he saw more promise in paring 'AD' with Kyrie Irving, which is line with their vision of winning now.

The Dallas Mavericks general manager shared this in the press conference in the aftermath of the blockbuster Doncic-Davis deal last month, highlighting that it was a gamble they were confident of making.

Joined by Mavericks coach Jason Kidd, Harrison said (via the New York Post):

"If you pair [Davis] with Kyrie and the rest of the guys, he fits with our time frame to win now and in the future. The future to me is three, four years from now. Ten years from now, I know. They'll probably bury me and J [Kidd] by then. Or we bury ourselves."

Unfortunately for Harrison and the Mavericks, they saw the Irving-Davis era get off to a tough start, with Davis getting injured in his first game in a Mavericks uniform and now Kyrie Irving out for the rest of the season with a torn ACL.