Kyrie Irving hasn't spoken to LeBron since Celtics trade
Kyrie Irving says he has not spoken to LeBron James since being traded to the Boston Celtics, and dismissed claims his desire to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers was about being the focal point of a team.
The four-time All-Star point guard was dealt to the Celtics last week in a blockbuster trade that saw Isaiah Thomas, Jamison Crowder, Ante Zizic and a 2018 first-round draft pick go the other way.
Rumours had previously circulated that Irving was keen to leave Cleveland to escape the shadow of James and lead a team by himself.
But speaking at his introductory media conference, Irving said: "Is there ever such thing as one person carrying a whole team? I don't think so, and when you have a collection of individuals that we're all having one mission and one goal and collectively getting better every single day there are a lot of moving parts and you have to depend on those moving parts to do their job and to their ultimate ability that only they know, and it's our job to bring the best out of one another."
.@KyrieIrving's running loose in the Celtics front office pic.twitter.com/AlnvL1p6AV
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) September 1, 2017
James and Irving led the Cavaliers to three straight NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors - losing in two of those appearances but securing Cleveland their first title in 2016.
On James, Irving added: "I haven't spoken to him [throughout the process of the trade] and my intent, like I said, was for my best intentions to look back at the amount of ground we covered in the last three-year span or even before that because we had a prior relationship and to really realise how special that was and how much growth happened in that amount of time.
"I'd be sitting up here and telling you guys a lie if I didn't tell you how much I learned from that guy."