Kyrie Irving was supposed to be the new savior for the Cleveland Cavaliers when they drafted him first overall in the 2011 NBA Draft after LeBron James’ departure in 2010. While Kyrie shone as an individual from the get-go, team success was hard to come by, until LeBron returned in 2014. Kevin Love also arrived via trade and suddenly, the Cavaliers were the top dog in the Eastern Conference.
The trio would help the franchise win its first title in 2016, with Irving hitting arguably the greatest clutch shot in NBA history, as he drilled a three-pointer in Game 7 over Stephen Curry to complete a 3-1 comeback against the 73-9 Golden State Warriors. Just a few years later though, Irving would demand a trade from the team and he definitely burned some bridges with the way he left. With Kyrie playing against his old team on Monday night, fans were divided on whether the franchise should retire his no. 2 jersey, but Love feels they absolutely should do it.
via Cleveland:
“Without a doubt. Absolutely. Right away, after his career ends,” Love told cleveland.com when asked after the 125-117 Cavs loss. “It’s not even a question to me. He needs to be up there. He made the biggest shot in franchise history and one of the most important shots in Finals history when you consider how it all went down — what it meant for the city, what it meant for his legacy, LeBron’s legacy and everything else, including that Golden State team that became a dynasty and was historically great.”
While Love is correct when he talks about the significance of the shot, this is definitely a tricky situation. The fans have greeted him with boos every time he has come back to play them and Kevin Durant said that Cavaliers fans will always hate Kyrie. Time heals all wounds and maybe the fans would get over it once Kyrie retires, but as of now, they would have no interest in having his jersey retired.
Kyrie Irving Spoke On The Pressure He Was Under To Replace LeBron James
The Cavaliers had instantly gone from contenders to bottom feeders in one season thanks to LeBron leaving and it was up to a young Kyrie to get them back on top. Irving said he put a lot of pressure on himself to fill LeBron’s shoes when he was asked about his memories regarding his time with the team
Kyrie hasn’t had much success on a team front since leaving the Cavs but this season might finally be it. He and the Brooklyn Nets are the in-form team in the league right now and look like a big title threat at present.
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