Isn't this at least some kind of indictment on Stephens ? That he can't manage the roster ?

Isn't this at least some kind of indictment on Stephens ? That he can't manage the roster ?

Kyrie Irving apologized to LeBron James for not appreciating his leadership
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ESPN
BOSTON -- Celtics guard Kyrie Irving said that in the wake of his outbursts at coach Brad Stevens and forward Gordon Hayward on the court at the end of Saturday's loss at the Orlando Magic, and pointed criticisms of Boston's young players afterward, he called LeBron James and apologized for the way he handled criticism from James when the two were teammates in Cleveland.

"Obviously, this was a big deal for me, because I had to call [LeBron] and tell him I apologized for being that young player that wanted everything at his fingertips, and I wanted everything at my threshold," Irving said after scoring 27 points and dishing out a career-high 18 assists in Boston's 117-108 home victory over the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night. "I wanted to be the guy that led us to a championship. I wanted to be the leader. I wanted to be all that, and the responsibility of being the best in the world and leading your team is something that is not meant for many people.

"[LeBron] was one of those guys who came to Cleveland and tried to show us how to win a championship, and it was hard for him, and sometimes getting the most out of the group is not the easiest thing in the world."


In the wake of his calling out the Celtics' young players, Kyrie Irving said Wednesday that he reached out to LeBron James to apologize for the way he reacted to James' criticism while the two were teammates in Cleveland.

Saturday's discontent was the latest in a series of situations this season in which Irving has called out the team's young players, in some form or fashion, for their play. As Boston has struggled to live up to its preseason expectations -- after Wednesday's win, the Celtics are now 26-18 and remain in fifth place in the Eastern Conference standings -- Irving has repeatedly cited the team's youth and inexperience as something Boston needs to work through to get where it needs to go.

The combination of Irving being frustrated with the play Stevens called with Boston trailing by two in the final seconds of Saturday's loss, his reaction when Hayward passed the ball to Jayson Tatum instead and Tatum missed the final shot, and the things he said after the game, though, created a firestorm that lasted through the weekend.

"Experience," Irving told reporters after Saturday's loss. "We're lacking it, and because of that, we have a lot of learning to do."

Irving apologized for the comments Monday, but then he didn't play because of a quad injury as the Celtics lost in Brooklyn to the Nets. After that game, one of the team's young players, Jaylen Brown, repeatedly referred to Irving's comments, saying the Celtics "can't be pointing fingers," and that, "It starts from the top to the bottom, not the bottom to the top."

For his part, Irving said Brown was right, and Irving apologized for saying what he did in a public forum.

"I did a poor job of setting an example for these guys of what it's like to get something out of your teammates," Irving said. "You go and you say something publicly and it ends up received in so many different ways and you never know how fragile or what guys are going through when you say things like that. You're expecting results, but at the same time, I should've kept it in house. Going forward, I want to test these young guys, but I can't be a bully like that. I want to get the best out of them, but I can't do it personally like that. That was a learning experience for me of being in this position of really realizing the magnitude of my voice and what I really mean to these guys. I want to see them do well and do that where I empowered them.

"It takes a real man to go back, call somebody and be like, 'Hey, man, I was young. I made some mistakes, I wasn't seeing the big picture like you were. I didn't have the end of the season in mind.'"
Kyrie Irving on apologizing to LeBron James
"[Jaylen] was right. I gotta do the right things and not point fingers at individuals and really realize what we can do as group, despite when we go on the road or the mishaps we may have. I've been there to the championship. I've tasted it. But I can't expect that they're gonna get it. I'm just really working on my patience and just coming to helping these guys realize that we can do it against the best teams; but in order to be that championship-level team, we gotta do that every single day to help our team prove to not just the Raptors or Golden State that we can play with them, but we gotta prove it to every team that we can really play with them."

One of the ironies of the comments Irving has made publicly at times -- and the friction that has flared up with the team's young players because of it -- is that it has been reminiscent of the way Irving would occasionally bristle at the things James would say about him after James' return to Cleveland in 2014.

James, who had won a pair of titles and reached four NBA Finals in his four years with the Miami Heat, came back to Cleveland to team up with Irving and Kevin Love -- a pair of young stars who, before playing alongside James, hadn't played in a single playoff game.

And at times, Irving was none too pleased with the way James spoke about it.

But in thinking about how things transpired Saturday, Irving said he was moved to call James to talk about what happened, and about how, with the benefit of hindsight, he has a far better appreciation for what James was trying to do back then.

"Like I said, only few are meant for it or chosen for it, and I feel like the best person to call was him he's been in this situation," Irving said. "He's been there with me. I've been the young guy, being a 22-year-old kid and I want everything. I want everything right now. Coming off an All-Star year starting and this heck of a presence is coming back and now I gotta adjust my game to this guy.


"You take it personal, but at the end of the day, he wants what's best. And he has a legacy he wants to leave, and he has a window he wants to capture. So, I think what that brought me back to was like, all right, how do I get the best out of this group to the success they had last year and then helping them realize what it takes to win a championship."

Part of Irving's desire to seek a trade from the Cavaliers in the summer of 2017 -- a process that eventually led to him being traded to Boston several weeks later -- was to be in the same position James had in Cleveland, as the undisputed leader of a championship team.

Irving looked the part on the court Wednesday night, helping break a tie at 106 late in the fourth quarter with an 11-0 Celtics run that included a turnaround jumper, a 3-pointer and assists on two baskets by Al Horford and another by Tatum to put away the game.

Irving admitted, however, that he's still trying to come to grips with the rest of the responsibilities that come with the role -- and that there was no one who was better for him to reach out to for help than James, based on everything the two of them have been through in the past.

"Being in this position is something new for me," Irving said. "So I take it with a grain of salt and I just enjoy all of this. So having that moment to be able to call a guy like that where we've been through so much, where we won a championship together ... it took a lot.

"Now I'm in this position; I asked for this and I want this. I want the responsibility. And I take it on full force. But it's also good to reach out for help and really take responsibility for what you've done in your career. It takes a real man to go back, call somebody and be like, 'Hey, man, I was young. I made some mistakes, I wasn't seeing the big picture like you were. I didn't have the end of the season in mind.' I just wanted to get my stats and make All-Star Games, which in his career means like this much at that point. So it was just good, and it gave me a peace of mind to go about what I've gotta go do. Obviously, I'm going to be competing against him the best and everybody else in the league. But it was good."

This is going to reach a head pretty soon.

Two years later and you are still whining about this guy wantimg to blaze his own trail. Give it a rest. The "He ain't shit without Lebron" narrative is stupid since he is currently a Finals contender while Lebron is about to miss the playoffs.

Lebron is out here like a glorified "Tark the Shark" or Coach Cal. Its embarrassing to see a so called All Time best player out here recruiting players all the time.

it seems the one whining is not veganfan but Irving

This is going to reach a head pretty soon.

LTG, you have to take the L on this one. Irving has come out and said he was wrong. How can you still maintain he was right?

This is going to reach a head pretty soon.

Do you even read.

[b]Irving needs to shut the fuck up and play ball. He admitted his mistake and hopefully he can move on.
[/b]

For the record when have you ever taken the "L" on anything?


Many that always argue that never admit to being wrong about anything. When they're wrong they either ignore it or start spinning it as if they were correct all along.

MCW isn't good. I still think he could be a rotational backup PG with someone like Thibodeau or Popovich as his coach. Thibodeau has had quite a few point guards do well under him that did poorly elsewhere. But it seems we will never know. Especially in today's NBA where you have to be able to hit from 23' out.

Will Kevin Love apologize to Lebron for forcing him to torment him his whole time there while Love was going through mental issues?

Don't mix up me rarely being wrong with me not being able to take the L. I've taken it on Brett Jackson and MCW.

LTG, you have to take the L on this one. Irving has come out and said he was wrong. How can you still maintain he was right?

This is going to reach a head pretty soon.

Don't mix up me rarely being wrong with me not being able to take the L. I've taken it on Brett Jackson and MCW.

This is going to reach a head pretty soon.

I said Kyrie would never win the finals as the alpha. I never said he wouldn't have regular season success. I even said he'd make the HOF. He's only relevant at this level because of LBJ. Glad he bent the knee today. Like he should have always done.

Didn't he hit the finals winner for Cleveland?

I hope that isn't your criterion for being an alpha, or you're going to have some funky alphas over the years.

Fair enough. I'll change it.

Didn't he hit the finals winner for Cleveland and also average over 27 points per game in the series?

LeBron had 29.7 PPG, and had 79 rebounds to Kyrie's 27, and 62 assists to Kyrie's 27, and 18 steals to Kyrie's 15, and 16 blocks to Kyrie's 5, got to the FT line more, had a better eFG%, had a better GmSc AND won Finals MVP.

Kyrie was a strong Robin in that series.

This is going to reach a head pretty soon.

I said Kyrie would never win the finals as the alpha. I never said he wouldn't have regular season success. I even said he'd make the HOF. He's only relevant at this level because of LBJ. Glad he bent the knee today. Like he should have always done.

This is going to reach a head pretty soon.

You said that he would never make it out of the first round without Lebron. Those Goal Posts sure are tap dancing now aren't they?

I said Kyrie would never win the finals as the alpha. I never said he wouldn't have regular season success. I even said he'd make the HOF. He's only relevant at this level because of LBJ. Glad he bent the knee today. Like he should have always done.

This is going to reach a head pretty soon.

Proof

This is going to reach a head pretty soon.

What happened when LeBron got back to the Finals last year without Kyrie?

Ask Kyrie. He was watching LBJ on TV from his bitchcave.