Written by Ben Rohrbach at YahooSports.com
Why Kyrie Irving subjected himself to ESPN’s “First Take” is beyond me, but the All-Star point guard spent 90 minutes on Monday morning cryptically answering questions from Stephen A. Smith and Max Kellerman about his reasons for leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers and his relationship with LeBron James.
Inquiries about Irving’s trade request, reports he wanted out from LeBron’s shadow and the league-wide drama that ensued were met with responses along these lines from the newest member of the Boston Celtics: “I don’t really have an ego. I have a presence and aura about me that’s very reality-based,” and, “Oh, if you’re very much woke, there’s no such thing as distractions, especially all this.”
Except, Irving answered one line of questioning with the very clarity we’ve sought since the trade:
.@KyrieIrving on why he didn’t inform LeBron James that he wanted out of Cleveland. pic.twitter.com/WF9GlCA54o
— First Take (@FirstTake) September 18, 2017
Smith: Did you speak to LeBron James before you and your representatives met with ownership and let them know that you wanted out?
Irving: “No.”
Smith: “Why not?”
Irving: “Why would I have to?”
Smith: “If you don’t speak to somebody about that, they might take it personally.”
Irving: “Yeah.”
Smith: “Do you care about that at all?”
Irving: “No.”
Irving then elaborated:
“I think we’re forgetting one important thing. … I don’t think that you owe anything to another person in terms of figuring out what you want to do with your life. It’s not anything personal. I’m not trying to tirade anybody. I’m not here to go at any particular person or the organization, because I have nothing but love for Cleveland. I have nothing but love for the times that I spent there. There’s nothing about that.
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