Kyrie Irving out for Nets game Sunday vs. Heat, has started on-court work to return

In the not-to-distant future, Kyrie Irving will return to the Brooklyn Nets lineup.

That day will not be Sunday vs. Miami, however, he is listed as out and will miss his ninth straight game with a shoulder impingement, coach Kenny Atkinson told the media Saturday. The Nets have gone 6-2 without Irving in the lineup thanks to Spencer Dinwiddie stepping up his scoring and playmaking role (enough to get him named Eastern Conference Player of the Week last week).

The good news is, Irving is doing on-court work and getting closer to a return, Atkinson said. Via Collin Martin of SNY.tv.

“First thing about Kyrie, he started on-court work, which is a real positive sign for us,” Atkinson said. “He will be out for Miami. And then we’ll see how it progresses. The fact that he started the on-court work is good news for us. Out for Miami and then we’ll see going forward.”

There is no definitive timeline in there, but it sounds like Irving could return sooner rather than later.

They could use him, Irving remains the best scorer the Nets have, and it’s not close. The key is finding the extra pass and the offensive flow the team has with Dinwiddie running the show and keep that, just adding in Irving’s scoring.