Kyrie Irving didn’t disrespect Cleveland

Kyrie Irving may have turned the hearts of the Cleveland faithful against him with his request to be traded from the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, the his latest controversy is anything but.

Kyrie Irving has turned the entire Cleveland Cavaliers fan base against him with his comments all season. The latest, per The Undefeated’s Marc J. Spears, the latest in a string of controversial statements he’s made since being traded to the Boston Celtics:

"“It’s exciting to be on the East Coast, I will tell you that,” Irving said. “It’s fast-paced. There are a lot of different cultures. You get it all. I was talking to my best friend the other day. It is really a major city coming from Cleveland where it is the Midwest. The culture is different. Then you move to East Coast, to Boston, it’s a real, live ongoing, thriving city, consistently ongoing. It doesn’t matter what hour throughout the night.“You go in Cleveland and it would be at night and there were things going on. You could see it was a vast difference of what Cleveland is and what Boston is. But Boston is one of those cities … I’m driving in and I’m like, ‘OK, I’m really in a real, live sports city and a great city.’”"

Many people are up-in-arms from Irving’s comments about the difference between Cleveland and Boston but it makes no sense. There’s a line between fandom and rational thought at times and this would be one of them. Cleveland is a great sports city but compared to the history and allure of the Boston sports scene, there’s certainly a difference.

It starts with the winning cultures of the Boston franchises.

The Boston Red Sox (MLB) have won eight MLB championships, including the first ever World Series, with three coming in the new millennium. The New England Patriots (NFL), formerly known as the Boston Patriots, have won five Super Bowls. All of these Super Bowls have come in the new millennium. The Boston Celtics (NBA) have played and won more games than any other NBA team and have 17 NBA championships. Their last championship win came in 2008.

Even the Boston Bruins (NHL) have six Stanley Cup wins, with their last coming in 2011.

For comparison, the Cleveland Indians (MLB) have won two MLB championships and none since 1948. The Cleveland Browns (NFL), have four NFL championships and were once one of the most dominant teams in the league. However, the Browns haven’t won a championship since 1964. The Cleveland Cavaliers (NBA) just won the first championship in franchise history in 2016.

While both cities have a rich sports history, Boston’s is richer. That’s no slight against Cleveland, just an acknowledgment of the facts. What I will say is that, although I have never lived in Boston, people in Cleveland are die-hard fans when it comes to their sports teams.

You’d have to be to support the Browns season after season, quarterback after quarterback. Right?

Moving past that, into the idea that Boston presents a more fast-paced environment than Cleveland — I’ve never been to Boston and I’ve only recently moved to Ohio, so I have no personal beliefs about that. However, there is a difference from the pace in the Midwest and in major cities on the East Coast. Again, with the love people in the Midwest have for their blue-collar lifestyles, this shouldn’t even be perceived as a slight. Just another fact-based acknowledgement of the difference in two cities.

The urge to hate Irving is strong, particularly because people can’t fathom why he wouldn’t want to play with LeBron James.

"“The only reason it kind of has garnered that much energy and attention is because of how special we were” (Kyrie Irving per The Undefeated’s Marc J. Spears)"

However, nearly every Irving comment where he praises James, Cleveland or shows genuine happiness from his time with the Cleveland Cavaliers is overlooked.

"“You can always look back, and it’s a standstill in time where you look back at what happened. The amount of emotion and sacrifice it took to get something that special in Cleveland, and the only [NBA] championship at that … the way we did it was 1-of-1. We are 1-of-1 in NBA history, so that is pretty awesome” (Kyrie Irving per The Undefeated’s Marc J. Spears)“I’m appreciative of [my career in Cleveland]. The multiple legacies I want to leave in my life, Cleveland is definitely part of one. Whether it’s appreciated or not, it doesn’t matter to me. I think the effect, the actual time I spent there, is what matters most, and actually trying to be remembered for what happened.” (Kyrie Irving per The Undefeated’s Marc J. Spears)"

Irving was one of the greatest players in Cleveland Cavaliers history and a fan favorite. It’s disappointing to see how Cavs’ fans perspective of Irving has devolved in recent weeks but it’s understandable due to the magnitude of the request and the significance Irving had to the franchise.

As James said, he was ready to give Irving “the keys” to the franchise whenever he was ready to move one. Perhaps Irving couldn’t wait for that day or maybe he always planned to leave. However, it doesn’t mean he hated James, his teammates, the organization or Cleveland.

Related Story: A first look at the Cavs new lineup and rotation