The news of Kyrie Irving’s demands to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers caught much of NBA world off-guard, but it didn’t have the same effect on Draymond Green.
According to Bleacher Report’s Vincent Goodwill, Green said he knew Irving had bigger plans than being a career sidekick.
“No, I wasn’t surprised at all actually. Just because I know the type of person he is. He wants more.”
Irving spent six years with the Cavs, which included three seasons of teaming up with LeBron James. During that stretch, Cleveland won the Eastern Conference three times and the NBA Finals once. Irving hit the game-winning shot to beat Green and the Golden State Warriors, too.
But as long as LeBron is headlining a roster, he’ll be the focal point. It’s entirely understandable that Irving, as Green said, wanted more. And considering the problems surrounding Cleveland this season, he might’ve left the organization at the perfect time.
Since joining the Boston Celtics, Irving has become the clear-cut No. 1 offensive option for the club. He’s averaging 24.5 points, while the second-highest contributor, Jaylen Brown, is at 14.0 per game.
Boston is Irving’s team. Most of the NBA world didn’t see that coming, but don’t count Green among the surprised.