Why the Cleveland Cavaliers should regret trading Kyrie Irving
The Cleveland Cavaliers should regret ever trading Kyrie Irving.
Sitting on the beach in late July (ironically enough wearing a Kyrie Irving jersey at the time) I was shocked to hear the news that Irving wanted out of Cleveland. But, I did not think the Cleveland Cavaliers would actually wind up trading him, after all, he is a top 15 player in the NBA. Talented stars like Irving do not come around often in today’s game.
As we all know now, Irving is in Boston and the Cavaliers are struggling to even win a game. I know hindsight is 20/20, but the Kyrie trade is looking like more of a mistake with every painful loss Cleveland suffers.
Irving had his flaws, which fans were quick to point out the moment Irving was shipped off to Boston. He was not known as a great defender and was only interested in playing on one side of the ball.
Isaiah Thomas, the best player Cleveland received from Boston, is an even worse defender than Irving. Albeit Irving is playing in a great defensive system, he still ranks 12th (yes 12th!) in player defensive efficiency.
Yes, it is just one stat of the hundreds out there. But Irving is now thriving in a system compatible with him, which has turned him into a truly elite player.
The Cavaliers should be kicking themselves now for giving up on such a young, yet proven star.
Yes, I understand Irving asked for a trade. Yet, LaMarcus Aldridge asked for a trade as well yet he still remains in San Antonio, thriving in his time without Kawhi Leonard.
How the Aldridge trade request was handled by the Spurs is exactly how the Cavaliers should have handled their situation with Irving.
Aldridge was unhappy with how he was being used in Gregg Popovich’s system. Popovich and Spurs owner R.C. Buford were also honest with Aldridge. They were not trading him unless they got back a superstar caliber player.
So the two sides met, hashed out their differences and ultimately things worked out for the best for all parties.
Gregg Popovich says LaMarcus Aldridge’s improvement with SA is in part because Popovich “stopped overcoaching him.” When I asked Pop what brought him to the decision to change, he revealed LMA asked for a trade this summer. Said it was the first time in 20 years a player did that
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) January 12, 2018
This is how Irving’s trade request should have been handled. Instead of shipping him away for what now looks to be a questionable deal, Cleveland should have waited.
Irving was under contract with the Cavaliers for two more full seasons (and had a player option for the third year) and seemingly held no power in this scenario. But as it turns out he held all the power. And just a few weeks after his trade demand, Irving got his wish.
It would have been nice to see Irving stick around and try to work out the issues. But who knows, if the Cavaliers did not trade Irving as he requested, maybe he would have just held out.
It is hard to see Irving taking such a drastic step, but it could very well have come to that.
There is drama surrounding everything LeBron James does, it is just the way it is. Irving understandably did not want to be in the shadows of James. But if he just stuck it out for another year, Irving could have gotten the chance to run the team if James left after the 2017-18 season.
In the meantime, Irving could have continued to flourish alongside LeBron and Kevin Love. Breaking up the core of the Cavaliers has put a significant rift in the foundation of the team.
The big difference between the Spurs and Cavaliers is simple, their organizations are ran differently. San Antonio has been a staple of consistency for decades, while the Cavaliers failed to do anything noteworthy over the last 20 years when LeBron was not in a Wine and Gold uniform.
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San Antonio has taken the team first approach, with everyone having a defined role. No player was bigger than the coach, and Popovich is not going to get in the way of R.C. Buford.
In Cleveland, LeBron runs the show, Lue is viewed as merely a puppet and Dan Gilbert constantly lets his ego get in the way. This is why there is chaos in the Cavaliers organization. There is no stability, no trust, no clear vision.
No wonder why Kyrie wanted out, and who can blame him at this point?
This whole situation seems to be leading to an inevitable meeting between James and Irving in the playoffs. As things stand now I would favor the East-leading Celtics over the struggling Cavaliers. At this point Cleveland may not even make it to that point in the playoffs.
There was hope after the trade, but now we have seen the reality of life after Kyrie, and it is not pretty. The best we can do now is wonder ‘what if?’ and hope that the Cavaliers grow up, figure it out and get back to their winning ways.
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Both sides got what they wanted when Irving was traded to Boston. Now it seems like Cleveland is wishing they had thought twice before trading away the franchise’s second best player, just to keep the franchise’s best player happy.