Mavericks' Kidd Blasts Speculation That A Heavy Workload Contributed To Irving's Knee Injury

Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd took issue Wednesday with media speculation that Kyrie Irving's heavy workload over the last month led to the nine-time All-Star's season-ending knee injury.

Irving tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee Monday in the first quarter of a 122-98 loss to the Sacramento Kings. Irving was fouled by DeMar DeRozan on a drive to the basket and his right foot landed on the foot of the Kings' Jonas Valanciunas.

"It's a freak accident," Kidd said before the Mavericks' game at Milwaukee. "That's how it should be reported. But we're not reporting it right. We're reporting on conspiracy theories."

The 32-year-old Irving was averaging 36.1 minutes per game to rank 12th in the NBA heading into Wednesday's action. His workload had increased in the month since the Mavericks traded five-time all-NBA guard Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.

He had played at least 40 minutes in each of his first five games after the trade. Irving averaged 39.3 minutes per game in February.