isaiah thomas has had a very storied career in the NBA so far. After being doubted by many, coming into the league with the 60th overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft, Isaiah didn’t find himself and was traded around a few teams. That was until he was traded to the Boston Celtics in 2015, and he started to find comfort and play great basketball. He managed to lead the Boston Celtics to the best record in the Eastern Conference in the 2016-17 season while averaging the second most points per game in the league and the most points per game in the fourth quarter.
Unfortunately for Isaiah, his team had to face off against Kyrie Irving, LeBron James, Kevin Love and the Cleveland Cavaliers, which they fell to 4-1 in the series.
Although he was still happy in Boston, that changed with a huge offseason trade that sent Kyrie Irving to the Celtics in exchange for Jae Crowder and himself. Thomas felt disrespected big time by his former team, and couldn’t wait to return from injury and work his tail off for the Cavaliers. But it didn’t go so well for him once again, not playing to the team's expectations they traded him to the Los Angeles Lakers just hours before the trade deadline.
LeBron speaks up
Many see LeBron James as the Cavaliers general manager, the guy who runs the show.
However he is just a player on the roster, not in a position of management, and it is hard to know if he liked playing alongside Isaiah or not, but he no longer does. The Cavaliers organization decided to trade Thomas to the Lakers for Clarkson and Nance Jr on Thursday afternoon in a trade which had the world talking. One man who was also talking was Cavs superstar LeBron James, and he let Isaiah know he wishes nothing but good luck in his future endeavors, saying:
“I want Isaiah to get his bounce and spring back, get healthy.
Being out seven months is difficult for anybody. I just feel like he was playing behind the eight ball, not only on the floor but just trying to get himself back to where he’s accustomed to playing. I wish the best for him in LA right now and his future. I wish him the best, that’s for sure.”
With speculation of LeBron and Isaiah feuding while teammates in Cleveland, this certainly clears the air, and makes things a lot better for the both of them.
We don't know exactly how the locker room was, or anything off the scenes, we know they just had a few chemistry problems on the floor. But there is no doubt both players are superstars and will be playing the best basketball they can shortly.
New scenery
Hopefully, this new scenery in Los Angeles gives Isaiah Thomas the ability to thrive and return to 100% after missing seven months dating back to last year with a hip injury. In Boston, Thomas found himself with the bright lights on him, so maybe a team like the Lakers can do just the same, and we can once again see ‘the little guy’ playing at an all-star level for years to come.
