The Kyrie Odyssey

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The Request

It was July 21, 2017 and the dust had seemingly settled on an NBA off-season that saw All-Stars being traded, other All-Stars teamed up with former college coaches.

The end of June and the first week of July had been one of the most hectic and surprising off-seasons in recent memory for NBA fans and personnel. Minnesota sent Kris Dunn, Zach Lavine and a draft pick that later became Lauri Markkanen to Chicago in return for three-time NBA All Star Jimmy Butler. Four-time NBA All Star Paul George was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder in what seemed at the time to be a tremendously lopsided trade – the Pacers received Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis. Nine-time NBA All Star Chris Paul joined forces with MVP candidate James Harden in a trade that sent Paul to the Houston Rockets. And All Star forward Gordon Hayward left Utah to join forces with his former college coach Brad Stevens in Boston. But while the summer of 2017 was filled with exciting trades and free agent departures, none of the moves seemed to disrupt the balance of power in the NBA. The belief that the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers would meet for the fourth straight year in the NBA Finals had yet to be challenged. But that all changed on July 21.

Friday afternoons in late summer aren’t typically days in which a major piece of breaking news comes from the NBA. But on the afternoon of July 21, 2017, the entire NBA world was sent into a frenzy with one tweet by ESPN insider Brian Windhorst. Kyrie Irving – the man who had hit the shot to bring Cleveland its first championship in 52 years, the man who was supposed to be Cleveland’s savior following Lebron James’ departure, the 25 year old who – in his first 6 years – had become one of the most dynamic offensive players in the NBA – had requested a trade.

The NBA world was shocked. How could a player possibly want to leave Lebron? Kyrie Irving had experienced unprecedented success in his first few seasons. The Cavaliers had just reached the NBA Finals three straight years – an accomplishment most players only dream of achieving. And Irving had accomplished something most kids only dream of when shooting hoops in their driveways, hitting the game winning shot in Game 7 of the NBA Finals.

For months people questioned Kyrie’s decision to request a trade out of Cleveland. Collin Cowherd, host of The Herd on Fox Sports, questioned Irving’s desire to no longer play alongside Lebron James saying, “And one of the things I say on this show-- hey, don't chase money in life. Chase great-- great management, great vision, great companies. There's a sea of money. But what happens with great is there's so little of it. There's very, very little great. There really is. There's a lot of good, a lot of mediocre, a lot of very good, a lot of almost great. There's almost no great. LeBron's great.”

Yes, Lebron James is great. Perhaps one of the greatest players to ever play the game depending on who you ask. But Irving wasn’t looking for great just on the court, but off of it as well. He made that apparent when he named Miami and San Antonio as possible destinations. Both the Spurs and the Heat have great owners, great front offices and great coaches. Areas in which Cleveland is lacking.

Agree with the decision or not, the reality was clear. Kyrie Irving wanted out of Cleveland.

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The Trade

The summer had been incredibly kind to the Boston Celtics. They started the offseason by being awarded the number-one pick in the upcoming NBA draft – thanks to a trade with the Brooklyn Nets years prior – despite finishing in first place in the Eastern Conference and advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals. Celtics General Manager Danny Ainge then swapped the number-one pick with Philadelphia in exchange for the number-three overall pick and a possible top-5 pick in 2018. Boston used the number-three pick on forward Jayson Tatum, a lengthy wing that can shoot the ball and defends well, the exact type of player Boston was looking for.

And that was just the start. The summer got even better on July, 4, when All-Star free agent Gordon Hayward decided to join the Boston Celtics and join up with his former college coach Brad Stevens. Boston finally seemed to have a team capable of competing with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference. Led by Isaiah Thomas and Al Horford, the Celtics had All-Stars leading the team, they had just added another All-Star in Hayward, they had young pieces in Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier. Boston even had a solid group of role players in Jae Crowder, Marcus Smart and Avery Bradley. Boston fans seemed content. Danny Ainge was not.

August 22, 2017.

NBA fans were shocked to see notifications appear on their phone screens from ESPN and Bleacher Report. “Kyrie Irving Traded to Celtics for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Draft Pick, More.” Celtics fans experienced a wide range of emotions in the following moments. ‘We got Kyrie Irving!’ ‘The Celtics are going to the Finals next year.’ ‘Wait, we had to give up the Nets pick next year?’ ‘Isaiah Thomas is gone…’

The next three days were dominated by headlines discussing the blockbuster trade that brought Kyrie to Boston. Following the trade Cleveland examined Thomas’ injured hip, an injury that caused Thomas to miss the final three games of the season and determined the injury to be worse than initially thought. The trade was on hold. But after 72 hours of negotiations the deal was finalized. Kyrie Irving was a Celtics and all it took was an additional second round pick.

Irving, whose father attended Boston University, embraced Boston the minute he arrived. He constantly praised the city, fan-base and organization. He was happy to be a Celtic. "Can't put a price on happiness," Irving said in his introductory press conference alongside his fellow newcomer to Boston, Gordon Hayward.

With Irving at the helm and Hayward by his side, the Celtics seemed poised for a championship run.

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The Injury

October 17, 2017. It was opening day in the NBA. Months of anticipation and excitement was finally ready to be fulfilled. The first game to be played? Boston at Cleveland. Kyrie Irving had yet to play a single regular season game with the Celtics before he was back in Cleveland playing in front of Cavaliers fans, only this time he was wearing Celtic green and white.

5 minutes and 14 seconds into the game, Celtic’s center Al Horford set a back-screen for Hayward who cut to the basket while Kyrie Irving tossed a lob from the three-point line. Lebron James and Hayward both jumped for the ball and what happened next still has to be blurred out on NBA.com’s videos. Hayward landed awkwardly on his left leg, instantly sending surrounding players into shock as medical staff rushed onto the court to assist Hayward who now laid on the court, leg fully extended with his left foot twisted 180 degrees to the left.

Hayward suffered a dislocated ankle and a fractured left tibia, ending his first season as a Boston Celtic. Kyrie finished his first game against his former team with 22 points on 8-for-17 shooting as the Cavaliers defeated the Celtics, but there were bigger things on his mind.

Irving, who at first seemed destined to lead his new team to the Finals, now faced the challenge of carrying his team to the Playoffs.

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The Winning Streak

The following night after the Celtic’s loss to Cleveland, Boston dropped their second straight game in a loss to the Milwaukee Bucks at home. Doubt started to creep into the minds of fans and media. ‘How would the Hayward injury effect the Celtics in the East?’ ‘Is Kyrie capable of leading a team?’ ‘Are the Celtics still a top-4 seed in the east even without Gordon Hayward?’ ‘Can Boston’s young players contribute to a championship level team?’

Media members were quick to point out Irving’s record without Lebron by his side. Cowherd explained, “it should be noted the last seven games Kyrie has played without LeBron, he's now 0-7. In the last three years, he's played … 19 games without LeBron. He's won four.”

Kyrie heard the noise. How could he not? He knew that people would always question his decision to be traded. He knew that until he proved that he could win in the playoffs without Lebron there would be those that questioned whether he could be the best player on a championship caliber team. He knew those were the question he would have to face after abandoning what many viewed as an ideal situation. He also knew there was only one thing he could do to prove those people wrong. And that was win.

Over the next 16 games Irving averaged nearly 23 points per game to go along with 5 assists and 3 rebounds. All of which were Celtic wins. Irving was also able to lead Boston to wins over Milwaukee, San Antonia, Toronto and Golden State during that win streak and had Boston sitting atop the NBA standings at 16-2.

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The Season

The Celtics are over halfway through their regular season schedule and still sit atop the Eastern Conference standings. At 35-14, the Celtics are owners of the third best record in the NBA behind only the defending champion Golden State Warriors and the Houston Rockets – led by MVP candidate James Harden.

The Celtics were expected to be good, but not this good.

No team in the NBA has experienced more turnover and adversity than this Boston Celtics squad has. Boston returned only four players from last season – Horford, Brown, Rozier and Smart – and yet Brad Stevens has this team playing like they’ve been teammates for years. No team has experienced the prolonged loss of a key player – like the loss of Gordon Hayward and continued to play at a high level – yet Jayson Tatum, a 19 year old rookie, has transitioned seamlessly into the role of a starter, averaging almost 14 points per game to go along with 5.5 rebounds and 45% shooting from three.

But no one is as responsible for Boston’s success as Kyrie Irving. The man who left behind championship runs. The man who left behind the greatest player in the world. The man who left behind what most players only dream of. And for what? The opportunity to be the face of his own team and out of the shadows of Lebron?

Exactly.

"I'm looking forward to becoming something that I've always envisioned myself being, that's being a complete point guard on a great team,” Irving said. In a tremendous story by ESPN’s Jackie MacMullen, Irving explained what he was looking for, "Challenges are what makes us most human," he said. "[Fighting off] the fear of failure, showing people you are the best, that you've been preparing for this moment ... those are things that interest me."

And that’s exactly what Kyrie has done. The guy who no one thought was capable of winning without Lebron has done exactly that. Averaging nearly 25 points per game and 5 assists, Irving has the Celtics in first place in the Eastern Conference. The 25 year old point guard has been listed among the likes of Kevin Durant and James Harden as potential MVP candidates and was just named a starter in the 2018 All-Star game. But while the accolades are nice, Irving is focused on winning. Winning and being happy.

“I’m happy,” Irving says. And you can’t put a price on happiness.