Kyrie Irving

[Spud2nique]

ADV Cleveland here in my opinion. Not sure what Boston is doing but it looks like they are kinda screwing things up.. I like it cuz I hate the Celts.

[Jamaaliver]

So, my first thoughts:

-This is a clear win for CLE. They get good pieces to help them make one last run to the Finals, save luxury tax and get a likely lottery pick for the future.

-Is Kyrie that much of an upgrade over IT that it makes sense for BOS to include a lottery pick for him? IDK

-Celtics would have been better off keeping Avery Bradley, as he pairs better with Kyrie than any other PG on their roster.



But after thinking it over more...I get a better sense of what BOS was likely thinking:

-Ainge upgraded his wing rotation from Thomas/Bradley/Crowder --> Kyrie/Hayward/Jaylen Brown (A clear improvement)

-Celts don't want to pay I Thomas or A Bradley what they'll likely garner next summer, but paying max money years from now to Kyrie and Gordon makes more sense

-Kyrie is years away from Free Agency, and has yet to hit his ceiling

-I may be in the minority, but I don't think the Brooklyn pick will be as high as others think. It might be top 10. But it could fall out of the lottery altogether if Nets make the playoffs with a losing record. (A distinct possibility for a now-veteran team with no incentive to lose)

-Boston still has the Lakers/Kings pick moving forward

-J Brown and J Tatum made Crowder expendable. (But he was a really good role player, in his prime, on a bargain contract)



CLE gets an A for the trade. They clearly accomplished what they wanted.

Boston gets a B-. They improved their team, but this summer there were clear misplays and better options that never came to fruition. (Jimmy Butler, Paul George) This leaves them better equipped for the short term with star players now powering their ascent. But committing to Kyrie/Hayward/Horford isn't exactly a guaranteed formula for a title run.

[macd-gm]

Kyrie Irving has been traded to the Celtics in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic and Brooklyn's 2018 first-round pick.
Source: Shams Charania on Twitter
Aug 22 - 7:25 PM

Getting Thomas and Crowder with the pick was pretty good but the Celtics are looking good now. Sucks.

[Jamaaliver]

What is vs what could have been?

Read on Twitter

[Jamaaliver]

Celtics GM weighs in on Isaiah Thomas-Kyrie Irving trade

*Thomas’ hip, and contract situation, were a concern

Not only did Thomas miss the last three games of the Eastern Conference Finals with a right hip problem, but Ainge told CSN New England just hours before the trade went down that the Celtics had planned on administering additional testing prior to the start of training camp in order to gauge his status. When asked about the part the hip played in his decision – this after the Celtics and Thomas had considered surgery only to determine that it wasn’t necessary – Ainge stammered a bit before indicating that Thomas might not be ready for the start of the season.

“Um, I don’t – you know, it, some,” he said. “There’s going to be probably a little bit of a delay for Isaiah as he starts the season this year, but – um – I think that Isaiah should be fine and healthy as the season goes along.”

Add the hip situation to the question about Thomas’ next contract, and you have yourself a challenging equation. With free agency fast approaching next summer, Thomas – who averaged 28.9 points (third in the NBA) and 5.9 assists last season – would be looking to land a five-year, $179 million deal that would pay him $40.8 million in the final season (2022-23).

“I think that contracts do play a part in trades,” Ainge said when asked about the contrasting contract landscape between Thomas and Irving. “No question about it.”


*Irving’s age and acclaim were key factors

In the course of the 15 minutes that Ainge spoke, he mentioned Irving’s age by number no fewer than six times. Translation: He’s in his prime.

“His age is a great fit,” Ainge explained of Irving, who averaged 25.2 points and 5.8 assists last season before requesting a trade in June. “His age and experience is a great fit for us, with where we are with some of our younger players. His ability to score in a variety of ways – shooting from the three, getting to the basket – are elite.”

The impressive part, of course, is that Boston should spend the next couple years contending for a title while restocking their shelves with young talent too. In the next two years alone, they are slated to have five first round picks.

“I mean we have a player (in Irving) that has proven to be a sure thing,” Ainge said. “We know how unpredictable the draft can be, and we have a 25-year-old All-Star, Olympian, World Champion, top-notch scorer, at age 25. That is very rare. You do pay a heavy price for a player of that age and that caliber.”


*The Celtics may not be done just yet

When The Boston Globe’s Gary Washburn asked Ainge to summarize the Celtics’ summer, his answer was enough to make you wonder if we won’t be analyzing another big-time Boston move in the not-so-distant future.

“Why don’t we talk about (how he evaluates the summer) when the summer’s over Gary?” Ainge said with a chuckle. “Let’s wait and see what else happens. …Gary, we never know.”

USA Today


_

Read on Twitter

-

Spoiler:

Read on Twitter

[Jamaaliver]

Read on Twitter

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I gotta admit that I’m a little confused. It almost feels like we’re taking what Irving has already accomplished in his young career for granted.

He was the first overall pick in 2011.

He’s a four-time All-Star.

He was named All-NBA in his age-22 season.

He won MVP at the FIBA World Cup in 2014.

He was Team USA’s starting point guard and won a gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

He’s been to three straight Finals.

He’s won playoff games and shined on the same stage alongside some of the best players in the world. He already has a career-defining moment from Game 7 in the 2016 NBA Finals.

It’s as if Irving’s accomplishments work against him. Have we been overexposed? Playing alongside the potential GOAT in Cleveland helped put him in position to achieve what he has, but Irving has a career’s worth of accomplishments, all before entering his age-25 season. Few players, at any position, have ever had such a long résumé at this age. You may not love his style of play, but you can’t ignore the results.

[macd-gm]

^^^ it's the truth. Most of Kyrie's accomplishments are credited to Lebron but that's bs. Ainge/Kyrie are going to look like geniuses next summer and after.

[Jamaaliver]

Kyrie's debut as the man in Boston. How'd did he do under a legit coach as the consensus best player on his team?

Kyrie Irving was awesome. He had 22 points on 8 of 17 shooting and 10 assists. His shooting was as dangerous as expected, and he mixed in some gorgeous finishes at the rim. But he also moved well off the ball, he created for teammates, and he never relapsed into iso-mode to junk up the offense the way he'd done at various points with the Cavs.

Kyrie wanted his own team, and now he has it for real.

SI.com


It's only one game. But he was impressive last night. I think, had we managed to snag the kid, he'd be even better here under Budenholzer.

[macd-gm]

Kyrie's debut as the man in Boston. How'd did he do under a legit coach as the consensus best player on his team?

Kyrie Irving was awesome. He had 22 points on 8 of 17 shooting and 10 assists. His shooting was as dangerous as expected, and he mixed in some gorgeous finishes at the rim. But he also moved well off the ball, he created for teammates, and he never relapsed into iso-mode to junk up the offense the way he'd done at various points with the Cavs.

Kyrie wanted his own team, and now he has it for real.

SI.com


It's only one game. But he was impressive last night. I think, had we managed to snag the kid, he'd be even better here under Budenholzer.

First: Yes! I hope we threw the kitchen sink at them but guessing we didn't
Second: Spud, pay me now.

[Jamaaliver]

Man, the luster has fallen off the Celtics extraordinarily early--

Read on Twitter

I still think they can field a competitive team. They obviously struggled playing against the 2 best players in the world to start the season.

Never thought I'd type these words...but "they'll be better off once the Morris twin returns."

Spoiler:

Updated Later:

Read on Twitter

Read on Twitter

Read on Twitter

Read on Twitter

[Spud2nique]

Kyrie's debut as the man in Boston. How'd did he do under a legit coach as the consensus best player on his team?

Kyrie Irving was awesome. He had 22 points on 8 of 17 shooting and 10 assists. His shooting was as dangerous as expected, and he mixed in some gorgeous finishes at the rim. But he also moved well off the ball, he created for teammates, and he never relapsed into iso-mode to junk up the offense the way he'd done at various points with the Cavs.

Kyrie wanted his own team, and now he has it for real.

SI.com


It's only one game. But he was impressive last night. I think, had we managed to snag the kid, he'd be even better here under Budenholzer.

First: Yes! I hope we threw the kitchen sink at them but guessing we didn't
Second: Spud, pay me now.

Mac you lost baby..get off the court..(enter Billy Hoyle..)..

And just like Sidney...I'm sure Mac has a few choice words for me and he lost the shootout (Celts messed up)..


Truth is Celts coulda gone in any direction. They got duped going in the direction of Kyrie, Hayward and Alice...

Somewhere Jaylen Brown is requesting a 2019 trade away from the Smeltics..

It's over Mac..0-2...You and the Celts can pack up it's over ...

[Jamaaliver]

Read on Twitter

One month into his BOS tenure, things are indeed looking rosy

[graymule]

Yep. Now his old team knows what they lost and see what happened when he became "The Man"
on his new team.
Too bad his new team is going to get beat by the lowly Hawks of Atlanta Saturday!!

[Spud2nique]

I hate Boston everything ...from tiny Matt Damon dolls to that dumb shamrock.

[Jamaaliver]

Read on Twitter

[LamarHampton]

^ my cat just took a dump in his litter box right behind my chair. I like the smell of that better than any celtics being ranked highly in mvp talks. I wish a pox upon their house.

[Jamaaliver]

Read on Twitter

[macd-gm]

Read on Twitter

First, I'll say Al is a great player. No denying that. But him being in an MVP discussion is a joke and honestly he has gone from being an underrated player in Atlanta to being one of the most overrated players in the league.

[Jamaaliver]

Little bit.

[Jamaaliver]

Ainge hustled the Cavs for Kyrie.

Read on Twitter