So, Kyrie Irving has a new pregame ritual.
Ahead of tonight’s preseason match against the Celtics, Kyrie Irving was caught burning sage at the arena before tip-off, a move that many obviously did not see coming.
Kyrie Irving makes his return to TD Garden.
Coverage of #Celtics-Nets begins at 7:30 p.m. on @NBCSBoston with Celtics Pregame Live! pic.twitter.com/7P82E6EqO9
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) December 18, 2020
How does his star teammate, Kevin Durant, feel about it? He responded on ESPN after Brooklyn’s 113-89 win.
“That’s his thing,” Durant said. “I mean, Ky probably sages his room before 2K at home. So, that’s just what he does and I think that gives us good energy. He does that in the locker room. That’s his thing and we all respect it and we respect his methods. He comes down and plays really hard for us.”
"Kyrie probably sages his room before he plays 2K … That's his thing, and we all respect him."
—KD to @CassidyHubbarth on Kyrie burning sage before the game pic.twitter.com/lojdGKZ09P
— ESPN (@espn) December 19, 2020
Kyrie has been known to be a little unorthodox in his thinking and traditions. It puts a lot of people off, but clearly, it’s different with Durant.
Through these first couple of preseason games, we’ve seen how talented Kyrie and Kevin are together. But perhaps the best aspect of their partnership is how close they are as friends and the respect they hold for each other.
They seem to have a real bond off the court and those things usually translate to chemistry while on the floor.
We have yet to see how they look in official action, but it won’t be long now, and it seems Kevin and Kyrie are going at it as strong as ever.