Kyrie hoping to return to Nets in the next week
If Kyrie Irving has his way, his return to the Brooklyn Nets lineup could be imminent. The point guard hopes to have his shoulder injury re-evaluated Friday with the goal of playing within a week.
"Realistically, we will reevaluate tomorrow," Irving said, according to ESPN's Malika Andrews. "See how I feel tomorrow. Then go Saturday - probably another practice ... hopefully I get some game reps in addition to practice probably in the next week or so. It could be less than that, but I'll give myself a week."
Irving was able to participate in a full practice Thursday, including working in 5-on-5 contact drills.
Irving hasn't played since Nov. 14 due to a right shoulder impingement, and his return couldn't come at a better time for Brooklyn. While the Nets won nine of their first 12 after his injury, they've currently lost seven straight and have the NBA's worst offensive rating since Christmas Day.
Before he went down, Irving was averaging 28.5 points and 7.2 assists in 33.8 minutes per game, while hitting 93.7% of his foul shots.