The point guard could bring back his black mask era as he did when he broke his maxilla during the 12-13 season where he wore the mask to protect his face. According to ESPN, he wasn’t in pain, and the only difficulty would be getting used to the new mask, which earned him the nickname the “Dark Knight” in the locker room. Irving on his black mask in 2012,
“It’s just precautionary, as usual….I enjoyed playing in it, just the look of it.”
In his 19 games wearing the mask that season, Irving shot 47.5 percent from the floor, 39.8 percent from three-point range, and averaged 24.5 points per game. Those figures were all significantly higher than his full-season averages.
As Kyrie recovers from his fracture, the Nets are scheduled for the NBA’s preseason games overseas in China where they will face off with Kyrie’s former Cavs teammate, LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers on Oct. 10. Following that game, the Nets are set to play in Shanghai and Oct. 12 in Shenzhen. The Nets open the regular season on Oct. 23 against the Minnesota Timberwolves.