Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving became frustrated when his name was included in trade talks for Paul George and Jimmy Butler. According to Ramona Shelburne, Dave McMenamin and Brian Windhorst of ESPN, Irving was upset with the Cavaliers' management when he was not informed that he was being dangled by the team for George and Butler. Before the trade reports surfaced, Irving was already frustrated with his role on the team behind LeBron James. Former general manager David Griffin tried to calm down Irving but the former left his post on June 20, days before his contract expired.
Cavs closed communication line on Irving
When Griffin left, the Cavs' front office, including team owner Dan Gilbert and acting GM Koby Altman, closed communication with Irving, who was kept in the dark about his involvement in trade discussions for George and Butler. The Cavaliers were about to pull off a trade with Indiana for George but the Pacers general manager pulled the plug on the deal at the last minute. Days later, the Pacers traded George to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis. Butler, for his part, was shipped on Draft Day to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
When he found out that his name was included in trade talks, Irving’s view of the team got even worse.
Days after, Irving met with Gilbert and expressed his desire to be traded to either the New York Knicks, San Antonio Spurs, Miami Heat, or Minnesota Timberwolves.
Irving frustrated with ‘Robin’ role on Cavaliers
According to ESPN, Irving told management that he wants to play a No. 1 role with a team and not play second fiddle to a fellow superstar like James.
The ESPN report said Irving was disappointed with his “Robin” or sidekick role to James, who controlled the ball most of the game despite being a forward. In addition, Irving was frustrated with the Cavs’ preferential treatment of James, as the team allows the latter’s close friend, Randy Mims, to travel on the team plane, while none of Irving's associates were given the same treatment.
Sources close to James said the superstar was frustrated and blindsided by Irving’s trade demand. However, James said he will not interfere in any moves that the Cavaliers make regarding Irving’s fate. However, James took a shot at Irving by posting two songs by rapper Meek Mill on Instagram with lyrics alluding to his teammate. First, James posted Mill’s song entitled “Wins & Losses,” and followed it with another Mill song titled, “Heavy Heart.”
