Has the Mavericks’ Kyrie Irving grown since last facing the Celtics in NBA Playoffs? He thinks so

When the Mavericks and Celtics meet in this year’s NBA Finals, there will be one player in particular who will likely draw the attention of the Celtics faithful.

Paul RudderEnglish_ASUpdate: Jun 4th, 2024 09:42 EDT0

Jesse JohnsonUSA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con

In a match-up that will see the West’s best against the East’s finest, Kyrie Irving will be facing his old team and one that he left under less-than-ideal circumstances. What that means for either team remains to be seen, but the guard himself has now given insight into his own thoughts as he prepares for a shot at a title.

Kyrie Irving & the Celtics have a complicated relationship

You may recall that Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving spent two seasons playing for the Boston Celtics from 2017-19. It wasn’t the best showing of Irving’s career and with that as context, his departure wasn’t exactly what you would call pleasant. Indeed, the relationship would only deteriorate over the next few seasons after Irving joined his new team and rival, the Brooklyn Nets, culminating in one infamous event that saw him ‘flipping the bird’ at a fan in the TD Garden following a Game 1 loss in the 2022 NBA playoffs.