Kyrie Irving suddenly requesting a trade to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers hit fans with an unexpected wave of reality last week. While news has hardly made it to the media, this Cavs team is in clear turmoil, and the worsening relationship between Kyrie Irving and LeBron James may be irreparable at this point.
ESPN first broke the story — Irving requesting a trade away from the franchise that drafted him on July 7. ESPN, citing sources, naming Irving’s wish of no longer playing alongside James as a main reason behind the request.
Then there was the report from ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, which James vehemently denied on Twitter:
#NotFacts people! ?Boooo!! Get another source. ?????. #EnjoyingMySummer #YouDoTheSame ??? https://t.co/XvfRWKWdur
— LeBron James (@KingJames) July 25, 2017
Perhaps the relationship between James and Irving isn’t as bad as some people are choosing to believe. New Cavs’ general manager Koby Altman seems to think so at least, as he explained during his press conference Wednesday afternoon.
“I think a lot of it has been overblown,” Altman said. “I think the people who are in this building every day haven’t seen any animosity. This is a group that’s gotten us to three straight Finals and won an NBA championship. They play great together on the floor. A lot of it I think is overblown, and we haven’t seen a lot of this animosity that’s been out there in the media.”
Regardless of whether Altman is telling the truth, multiple media reports have indicated that Irving is looking to move on from the Cavs. Perhaps him and James can work to make amends and fix things, but as things stand today, both the Cavaliers and Irving reportedly expect to move on from each other.
The Spurs, Knicks, Heat, Wolves, Celtics and Suns have been linked to Irving in recent days.
