Kyrie Irving's wishes of being traded have come true. On Tuesday evening, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the Cavs and the Celtics have reached a deal that will send Irving to Boston for isaiah thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and the 2018 Nets pick. Boston has been a rivaled team of LeBron James for most of his career. Also, both teams competed in last season's Eastern Conference Finals against one another.
The move will certainly work out for Kyrie, who is looking to be the leader of a team. The Celtics signed Gordon Hayward this summer and drafted a talented rookie in Jayson Tatum. The deal will also help the Cavs and possibly persuade LeBron to re-sign at the end of the upcoming season. As good as Isaiah Thomas has been, his size puts him at a disadvantage defensively at key moments of the game. However, having a guy with the size of LeBron that can handle the ball, will allow Thomas to play off the ball more often and score more points.
More importantly, it will provide James with a player that was in the same position as Irving a few years ago, when he decided to return home.
A player that was eager to play with the best player in the world because he knew it will give him a high chance at winning his first ever NBA title. That is the position that Thomas is now in, which will give LeBron a solid replacement. Last season, Isaiah averaged 28.9 ppg and Kyrie put up 25.2 ppg. The numbers were career highs for both players.
Will both teams meet again in the Eastern Conference Finals?
The Cavs defeated the Celtics in the ECF in five games. Isaiah Thomas missed three of those games due to a hip injury. Prior to his injury, it still did not appear that Boston had enough to take down the King. Now with the swap of point guards, the teams may be on even ground. Kyrie will most likely average more points per game next season and he will be one of the only players on the team that knows what it takes to win an NBA title.
Isaiah Thomas will be eager to raise his level of play even more now that he's playing alongside King James and Kevin Love. Also, it will work out a little better for the Cavs having a guy that embraces having the ball in his hands consistently in the 4th quarter. Thomas has also proven he can hit big shots in key moments of the game, which is something he does slightly better than Irving. Both teams will be getting what they need to go into the 2017-18 season with confidence. The Trade will be a weight off the shoulders for LeBron, who will now be free of his feud with Irving.
It is very well likely both teams will be seeing each other again in next season's Eastern Conference Finals. However, this time around, it may take more than five games for Cleveland to take down a Celtics team that will be much younger and talented than last year.
Regular season matchup
Fans won't have to wait long to see the two teams face off against one another. On opening night of the regular season, the Cavs will be at home taking on the Celtics in a rematch of last year's ECF. The ongoing offseason feud between LeBron and Kyrie will probably help the NBA gain the highest viewings the league has ever seen on an opening night. Fans will be eager to see how the two former teammates will do playing on opposite sides after competing in the last three NBA Finals together.