Brooklyn Nets ex-All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving still has plenty of game left on the court, but his behavior off it has been so erratic and at teams outright bizarre that he become something of a toxic asset across the league. A lengthy injury history hasn't exactly helped the 30-year-old's case either.
Still, per Jovan Buha of The Athletic, rumblings continue that your Los Angeles Lakers might be targeting a Hollywood reunion between Irving and his former Cleveland Cavaliers compatriot LeBron James. That dynamic duo won a very memorable title together in 2016, and all told led the club to three consecutive NBA Finals appearances from 2015-17, In the summer of 2017, Irving demanded a trade away from the franchise and was moved to the Boston Celtics. With a new supporting cast, James and Kevin Love went back to the Finals in 2018 anyway.
So could Irving help James and new running mate Anthony Davis return to the Finals in 2023? Could the two get along enough to get that done, and could Irving stop being a distraction away from the hardwood?
In speaking with Brandon "Scoop B" Robinson of Bally Sports (their full interview is viewable here), their former teammate, big man Larry Sanders, discussed the pair's dynamic and the general friction on the Cavaliers in that era. Sanders played in five games for the Cavs during James and Irving's final season together in 2016-17 as a deep-bench piece.
"I've often felt as though they were our modern-day version of Shaq and Kobe, as far as maybe not getting along -- but not the same extreme," Robinson said. "I think the difference is, it seems as though whatever issues they had, they fixed it at least publicly."
"I think going there, I didn't really understand how many internal issues they had, but it was a lot," Sanders said. "I felt like, they all felt like, when their numbers are called, they have to perform in order to win, right? And that's the expectation amongst the team. But then when they lose, it's their fault. And when they win, the spotlight is mostly on 'Bron, and what he did. But all of the other players have to play their part for 'Bron to win. So when they lose, it's like, 'Okay who has to get traded now?'" Sanders chuckled.
"I think [Kyrie] wanted to get from underneath that," Sanders offered. "I saw in [one] game, his number got called. He went out and did a crazy lay-up with his left hand, and we were still down. He sat on the bench. [These] might have been his words, it's what I heard: ''Bron, you're the best player. Go bring us back. You're the best player in the league.' I think that that energy made it where they bumped heads."
"I just think Ky wanted to really just enjoy what he was doing and let it be more of a team thing. I'm not saying it's not [a team thing] with 'Bron but I think 'Bron is on a mission. I think with Ky and with 'Bron, I think the mission is not the same."
"trade" - Google News
December 18, 2022 at 07:00AM
https://ift.tt/uo1lZdN
Lakers News: Possible Trade Target Kyrie Irving Had Massive Respect For Ex-Teammate LeBron James - Sports Illustrated
"trade" - Google News
https://ift.tt/kcTpx2Z
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar