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Kyrie Irving offers up ‘respect’ to Celtics after falling to Boston in NBA Finals
"So to see them accomplish — see them accomplish that, I'm really proud."
Despite his cemented role as an infamous Boston sports villain, Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving took the high road on Monday in the immediate aftermath of the Celtics’ championship celebration.
After getting pulled from Boston’s Game 5 clincher with a little over two minutes to go in regulation, Irving made sure to hug Joe Mazzulla and every Celtics player before walking back to Dallas’ bench in defeat.
Despite the evident sting that comes with losing to his former team — and a fanbase that’s more than happy to direct vitriol towards him — Irving opted to praise the Celtics at TD Garden as Boston celebrated its record-setting 18th championship.
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“We finally ran into a team where they beat us fair and square, and we weren’t able to respond to a lot of their runs and we weren’t able to execute at a high level,” Irving said of Dallas’ defeat at the hands of the Celtics. “So when I was shaking everybody’s hands, that was more of a sign of respect for their journey. They have been through an incredible five-year span of going to Game 7s or losing in the Finals, so they know what this bitter feeling feels like being up here answering questions about what this next year holds and I think they used everything as motivation.
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“They were healthy, and they really kept their head down and weren’t paying attention to any of the personal accolades or individual accolades,” Irving added. “I think they just came together as a team and were okay with each person being great in their role and selflessly putting their best foot forward.
“So I think we learned more than anything from this series on what it takes to not only get back to this level, but win at this level, and the Celtics are the perfect example for us this season because of how much they have had to deal with in the past few years.”
Even with his disastrous two-year run in Boston from 2017-19, Irving has stressed that he still maintains good relationships with several of his former Celtics teammates. And with Jaylen Brown taking home NBA Finals MVP honors, Irving made sure to tip his cap to the Celtics swingman.
“Did JB win Finals MVP? Yeah, that was big-time to see that trophy in his hands,” Irving said. “I think him and [Jayson Tatum] should have split it, but those two guys in particular have, you know, almost been like students and as well now becoming teachers in their own right.
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“So to see them accomplish — see them accomplish that, I’m really proud and also extremely motivated to get back to this position in the next few years with my guys and be able to win this thing.”
Irving has not had plenty of success against Boston since leaving the Celtics in free agency during the 2019 offseason. With Monday’s defeat, Irving has now only won one of his last 15 meetings against the Celtics (postseason included).
Even though Boston held the clear edge in this series when it came to outright talent and especially depth, Irving could have narrowed the gap for Dallas in this round had he managed to elevate his game.
Over five games against Boston in the series, Irving averaged 19.8 points — shooting just 41.4 percent from the field and a dismal 27.6 percent from 3-point range.
“I mean, basketball is a game of centimeters, man, sometimes inches, so when a ball is flying off your hands, sometimes it’s going to feel good, sometimes it isn’t. That’s the maturity aspect,” Irving said. “You got to move on to the next thing, and I’ve been talking about that.
“Whether I’m playing well specifically scoring-wise or I’m not, there is a team aspect here that we’re becoming more gelled into or dialed into. … I’ve been at the point of attack through most of my drives going against the Celtics one-on-one or coming off screens. So that’s what the summer is for, is just continuing to work on those things that I saw this year, the physicality, being able to adjust to it and by next year be in a better position.”
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