While there may not be an exact moment that the future of star point guard Kyrie Irving with the Boston Celtics came to an end, a new book — “Can’t Knock the Hustle” — by former Bleacher Report editor Matt Sullivan has pinpointed the start of what came next for the mercurial floor general: January 25, 2019.
This was the night that an ailing Irving invited friend and now teammate Kevin Durant to his home while the Golden State Warriors were visiting the Celtics for a mid-season tilt and the then-Boston guard was out recovering from the flu. Over dinner and glasses of wine, Durant and Irving made the conscious choice to remove themselves from situations they were not enjoying, their feelings of their current fanbases be damned.
“Controlling miniature versions of themselves and their teammates, like marionettes, they wondered how else they could string together a team that was going somewhere,” writes Sullivan via Fox Sports.
Did Kyrie leave the Celtics because of racism in Boston? His close friend recalled it was a factor:
"In terms of their racial history and stuff like that… is Boston the type of place I want to represent?"
Full page from my book CAN'T KNOCK THE HUSTLE: https://t.co/s9JaPShNWS pic.twitter.com/u621G5reuF
— Matt Sullivan (@sullduggery) May 26, 2021
