Stephen A. Smith was on ESPN's "First Take" talking about the current controversy with Kyrie Irving wanting the Cleveland Cavaliers to trade him. The entire situation apparently comes down to Kyrie not wanting to play with LeBron James anymore and wanting to find a team where he can be the star player. To this sentiment, Smith said that Kyrie is not in an "ideal situation" with the Cavaliers but he has no choice but to defer to LeBron as the star of this team.
Smith says he respects Kyrie
Before he got into the meat of his argument, Stephen A. Smith emphasized that he respects Kyrie Irving and considers him a good person.
Smith said that the minute that LeBron James returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the team suddenly became an unideal situation for Kyrie at that point.
Smith said that Kyrie has always been nice and respectful to him and as a result, Smith feels that Irving can explain this situation and how he feels about it in anyway that he wants. However, when it comes to how this entire controversy came about, Smith said that he really respects how Kyrie Irving has handled it. Smith is also happy with how LeBron has handled it.
Smith said that Kyrie Irving did not make a big deal out of this with the press and did not try to start slinging mud. Instead, Irving took his complaints to the Cleveland Cavaliers and gave them a chance to do something to fix the situation.
Smith did point out that Irving has no power in this at all because he is locked in for two more seasons, but he went through the proper channels to get something done.
LeBron is one of the two best players in the NBA
At the end of the day, Stephen A. Smith said that Kyrie Irving has nothing he can say or do about his role with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Smith said that Kevin Love is in the same predicament because both of them play with LeBron James, one of the top two players in all of basketball.
Smith said there is nothing wrong with deferring to LeBron James and there is no coach in the NBA who can say otherwise. Smith said that unless your name is Steph Curry or, to a lesser degree, Kevin Durant, every player in the NBA has to defer to LeBron James and that is just the way it goes.
The Cleveland Cavaliers now have a tough choice to make. Rumors already have LeBron James possibly leaving the Cavaliers after next season if they don't make moves to improve their team. If they trade Kyrie Irving, they will not be as good as they were last season. LeBron is one of the best players in the NBA but he can't win alone.
