Back in October, Kyrie Irving took a huge shot at his former teammate, LeBron James, saying Kevin Durant was the only guy he has really ever trusted to take clutch shots down the stretch.
“I felt like I was the best option on every team I’ve played for down the stretch. This is the first time in my career where I can be like ‘that motherf*cker can make that shot too.'”
That statement by Kyrie drew an enormous amount of reactions from the NBA community, who felt as though it was disrespectful to LeBron, who has made plenty of clutch shots over the years.
Apparently, LeBron himself feels the same way, as he recently told to Richard Jefferson on the “Road Trippin” podcast:
“So, when I heard the comment Kyrie made, I wanted to find the whole transcript. I was a little like, ‘damn.’ Once I got the whole transcript, I was like ‘damn.’
The whole time while I was there (in Cleveland), I only wanted to see him be the MVP of our league,” James said about Irving. “I only cared about his success, and it just didn’t align. It just didn’t align, and we was able to win a championship. That’s the craziest thing. We were still able to win a championship, and we could never align, but I only cared about his well-being, both on and off the floor, and it kind of hurt me a little bit”
On @RoadTrippinPod — LeBron said he was “hurt a little bit” by Kyrie Irving’s recent comments. LeBron also said he wanted Kyrie to be league MVP but they never “aligned.” It’s too bad the Lakers don’t play the Nets until Feb. 18 pic.twitter.com/JlY7B4sjV9
— Stefan Bondy (@SbondyNBA) December 8, 2020
Not only did LeBron hear Irving’s comments, he got the whole transcript of what was said. Needless to say, James was a bit disappointed.
He and Kyrie brought Cleveland their first Championship together back in 2016, putting on a historic performance to beat the Warriors in the Finals from down 3-1. Just two summers later, and Kyrie would demand a trade — for reasons that have still not become clear.
At the very least, one has to think a fractured partnership with James was at least partially to blame, as LeBron himself said they never really “aligned.”
The nature of their relationship, it seems, is one that continues to unfold with time.
