The issues between LeBron James and Kyrie Irving when they played for the Cleveland Cavaliers weren’t resolved when Irving was traded to the Boston Celtics.
However, Irving’s phone call last month to apologize to James was something that truly impressed the 16-year veteran, which he spoke about during All-Star Weekend.
LeBron James on his phone call from Kyrie Irving: It takes a real man to come to grips with what happened and apologize or say that, “‘At that point in time, I thought I was ready for something, but I really wasn’t.’” pic.twitter.com/2Q74TOm8t2
— Kyle Goon (@kylegoon) February 16, 2019
James came back to the Cavaliers in 2014 and clashed almost immediately with Irving, though the two would ultimately work together to help the team reach three consecutive NBA Finals. In 2016, the two players each played key roles in helping the Cavaliers win their first-ever league title, with Irving hitting the game-winning shot in Game 7 and James winning MVP accolades in the Finals.
However, soon after the Cavs lost in five games in the next year’s Finals, Irving asked to be traded. The chief reason offered was that he no longer wanted to play with James, with Irving ultimately dealt to the Celtics in August 2017.
With Irving now in James’ role as a veteran leader with the Celtics, he came to understand why James offered his past criticism. That led to the phone call that came when the Cavaliers were on their Western road trip and actually arrived when James was sitting down for dinner with Cavs power forward Kevin Love.
Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, only Love remains from what was the team’s Big 3 that also included James and Irving. James left in free agency last July, a move that’s sent the Cavs into a total rebuild and a 12-46 record at the All-Star break.
