One of the most talented combos in NBA history was LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, who helped the Cleveland Cavaliers win a championship in 2016 and advance to three straight NBA Finals. However, they were unable to accomplish as much in Cleveland as they may have due to Irving's departure in 2017. Before LeBron James' return to Cleveland in 2014–15, Kyrie Irving's first three NBA seasons saw nothing but failure for his Cavs. Therefore, James received a lot of credit when the two stars made it to three straight Finals between 2015 and 2017.
Irving made the decision to depart The King after they lost the 2017 NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors, who had acquired Kevin Durant in the previous offseason. He asked Cleveland for a trade, and they obliged by sending him to the Boston Celtics. Irving seems to desire nothing more than to be content on his own, as seen by his 2019 remarks.
After a game with Boston, Irving stated, "I had to call 'Bron and tell him I apologize for being that young player who wanted everything at his fingertips," according to NBA.com. "I wanted to be the guy who led us to a championship. I wanted to be the leader. I wanted to be all that." And Irving claimed he never had a dispute with James in 2022. But not just Irving’s team career, but his career as an individual has also seen a substantial dip since he left Lebron James’ side in 2017. His stats have deteriorated and injury concerns have also risen over the years since his departure.
Let’s have a look at his record post his departure from the Cavs:
2017-18 season:
On October 17, 2017, Irving made his Celtics debut against the Cavaliers in the team's season opener. Irving finished with 22 points and 10 assists despite the Celtics' 102-99 loss. At the buzzer, he had a chance to tie it with a 3-pointer but missed. After undergoing a minimally invasive treatment to remove a tension wire from his left knee on March 24, 2018, he was given a three- to six-week break. After another treatment was scheduled to remove two screws from his patella that were inserted in 2015 to repair a fracture he sustained during that year's NBA Finals, he was informed less than two weeks later that he would be sidelined for the entirety of the postseason and that his recovery would take four to five months.
In the 2017-18 season, he averaged 24.4 points, 3.8 rebounds and 5.1 assists in 60 games in the regular season.