NEW YORK _ The ankle bully is back. Kyrie Irving will probably make his return from a right shoulder impingement for the Nets' Sunday matchup against the Atlanta Hawks, according to an ESPN report. He'd missed 26 straight games due to injury.
Caris LeVert has also recently made his return after missing 24 games recovering from thumb surgery.
The Nets are at full strength _ or as full of strength as they'll be this season. "I think we're still in the same place," Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson said of a potential Kevin Durant return. "I don't think there's any thoughts of that happening."
Irving had been out since Brooklyn's Nov. 14 matchup against the Denver Nuggets with a shoulder injury he said he first sustained on Nov. 4 in the Nets' win against the Pelicans. "That Denver game was the last game I played," Irving said on Jan. 4. "After that it just progressively got worse."
Irving's condition _ a shoulder injury he said developed some bursitis _ didn't progress until he received a cortisone shot on Christmas Eve. He was then faced with an ultimatum: "I know getting it more than once or twice, you're putting yourself at risk," Irving said of receiving another cortisone shot. "I'll make the best decision for my health." Irving, though, did not need another shot. He said he had a setback because he "started doing exercises a little bit too soon."
"There were things that happened in the last month and a half that really put me in this position," Irving said at Nets practice on Thursday, where he was finally a full participant.
"But after the cortisone, it gave me a great stepping stone to continue to progress and work my way back on the floor," Irving, said. He was limited to non-contact drills in practice for the majority of his recovery process, and participated in both four-on-four and five-on-five drills and a live scrimmage with the Nets on Thursday with full contact.
Atkinson said Irving would do the same for the team's practice on Saturday. Clearly that practice went well.
Irving is back, and his return is right on time, as the Nets need all the help they can get. They snapped a seven-game losing streak with a 117-113 win over the Miami Heat on Friday, but Brooklyn's offensive firepower had taken a hit in recent weeks. The defense had held up, even with Iman Shumpert's departure and David Nwaba's season-ending Achilles injury, but the Nets couldn't find consistency on the other end.
Spencer Dinwiddie produced at an All-Star level with Irving and LeVert out, but the shooters (Taurean Prince, Garrett Temple and Joe Harris) were cold from 3-point range.
LeVert's return gave the Nets a jolt, and he hit a pair of 3s in the last four minutes to carry the Brooklyn to the win over Miami on Friday.
Irving's return comes before the Nets face a treacherous stretch: After the Hawks, the Nets face the Jazz, Sixers, Bucks and Sixers again, before hosting LeBron James and the Lakers Jan. 23.
