Kyrie Irving wanted LeBron James to get with him in the gym to work on his handles

Kyrie Irving is recognized as one of the greatest dribblers in the NBA today. He has an incredibly tight handle, and he makes it appear as if he has the ball on a string at times.

At one point during his Cleveland Cavaliers tenure, Irving allegedly wanted to work out with LeBron James in the summer in order to help improve the legend’s handles. Brendan Haywood — who played on the Cavaliers in the 2014-15 campaign — told the story.

“We’re playing against the [San Antonio] Spurs,” Haywood recalled. “I think Kyrie’s out that game, and Bron tried to go behind the back. [Manu] Ginobili picks him for the game. And he said it loud enough so people on the bench could hear — he was just talkin’ to me, but he truly meant it. He said, ‘Ahh, man, Bron’s gotta get with me in the offseason and work on his handle.’

“… But he didn’t mean no harm, but that’s how he viewed it, like, ‘Yo, like, bro need to come work with me real quick.’ We lookin’ around like, ‘Are you sure?’ … But that’s the confidence, though. … He believes, like, ‘Yo, I’m in there with Bron. I’m in there with K.D. (Kevin Durant). I’m that level.’ And I’m glad that Kyrie thinks that way.”

Irving, Haywood and James and the Cavaliers were one of the top teams in the NBA in the 2014-15 campaign by all accounts. Cleveland finished with the second-best regular-season record of any squad in the Eastern Conference at 53-29 and went on to represent the conference in the NBA Finals. Unfortunately, the Cavaliers didn’t have Irving for much of that championship series and lost to the Golden State Warriors in six games.

The 2014-15 season ended up being Haywood’s last in the NBA. While Haywood was no longer a member of the team, Irving and James still played together on the Cavaliers for multiple years after the 2014-15 campaign. The two were actually invaluable to the Cavaliers winning their very first title in franchise history the following season.

Furthermore, the Cavaliers were consistent title contenders during the entirety of the time when they employed Irving and James. Cleveland reached three consecutive NBA Finals with the duo leading the way for the Cavaliers (and got to a fourth straight without Irving).

But James and Irving are now both far removed from their days as teammates with Cleveland. Irving is now a member of the Dallas Mavericks, and he’s focused on helping Dallas win a title after the team lost to the Boston Celtics in the 2024 NBA Finals.

As for James, he’s in his seventh season playing for the Los Angeles Lakers and is looking to get the team out of a rut. Los Angeles has won just three of its last 10 contests.