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Irving set for 鈥榬owdy鈥 Cavs return
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Kyrie Irving is coming home to where his National Basketball Association journey began six years ago.
There will be familiar faces and new sounds.
Traded to Boston this summer after he demanded the Cavaliers deal him so he could escape LeBron James鈥 shadow, Irving will make his regular-season debut with the Celtics on Tuesday night (8am today China time) against his former team 鈥 and fans who loved him but may no longer be as adoring.
When Irving takes the floor in Quicken Loans Arena, the All-Star point guard will likely get the kind of reception he was accustomed to when he visited Boston or Golden State or Detroit while playing for Cleveland.
However, following a turbulent summer 鈥 including his recent slap at Cleveland鈥檚 athletic appetite 鈥 he鈥檒l be greeted with boos, taunts, heckles and other unpleasant vulgarities. There will be some cheers, but they might be hard to hear.
Cleveland has some sports anger issues these days. After the Indians were knocked out of the playoffs much earlier than expected, and with the Browns a winless train wreck, Cavaliers fans need to blow off some steam.
It will be directed at Irving, who downplayed his visit. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just hoops man,鈥 he said. 鈥淚鈥檝e been in Game 7 in San Francisco (Oakland), playing in a high-intense environment. There鈥檚 no blocking out the noise or anything like that. It鈥檚 going to be there whether I like it or not. It鈥檚 going to be rowdy in there. It鈥檚 going to be a great game opener, like it was the last six years when I was there.鈥
The Cavs have planned a video 鈥榯hank you鈥 for Irving, who made the biggest shot in franchise history 鈥 a step-back 3-pointer in the waning moments of Game 7 of the NBA Finals that lifted Cleveland to a title, the city鈥檚 first in 52 years.
The tribute is undoubtedly deserved, and it may have provided some closure for Irving and Cavs fans still smarting from him wanting to abandon a team that has been to three straight Finals and is penciled in for a fourth. But last week, Irving fanned flames when he said he was excited that his career has taken him to Boston, 鈥渁 real, live sports city鈥, implying Cleveland wasn鈥檛 one.
Irving鈥檚 comeback was already going to be one of the NBA鈥檚 top regular-season games, and his comment took it to another level. Irving understands there鈥檚 some animosity toward him, but he鈥檚 not going to get caught up in how other鈥檚 feel about his decision to leave. 鈥淭he excitement and the energy is there but I think everything extra has been created by outside influence,鈥 he said.
While Irving鈥檚 return could be unruly, it won鈥檛 compare to what James experienced in 2010, when he came back to Cleveland as a member of the Miami Heat after bolting his home state as a free agent a few months earlier.
Cleveland was seething, and James endured a night of hatred he鈥檒l never forget. To this day, James rattles off 鈥淒ecember 2, 2010,鈥 like it鈥檚 one of his kid鈥檚 birthdays.
On the eve of Irving鈥檚 return, Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said his former guard will get just what Cleveland fans feel he deserves. 鈥淲e鈥檝e got the best fans in the world and they鈥檙e going to do whatever they see best,鈥 he said. 鈥淲hatever decision they make, that鈥檚 the right one. Because they鈥檝e been behind us for three straight years, since I鈥檝e been here, they鈥檝e always made the right decisions. So whatever they decide to do, I embrace whatever they do.鈥
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