After years of trials and tribulation, Kyrie Irving couldn't be overjoyed that he finally returned to the familiar place he had been desperate to witness. Speaking in front of the media after he and the Dallas Mavericks stamped their ticket to the Western Conference Finals in Game 6 over the Oklahoma City Thunder, Kai fondly reflected on his journey of being back to contend and getting closer to the championship.
"I had to make an impromptu speech and I had to do my best not to let some tears come down from my eyes," Irving said .
"It feels like it has been a long time coming just being back in this position, getting back to the Conference Finals. It's been a long way back. When I look back at parts of my career where I took it for granted, just getting to the Conference Finals three straight [with the Cleveland Cavaliers] and then not getting back for a little bit, that weighs on you as a competitor.”
A humbling past
It's truly a humbling yet fulfilling process for Kyrie, considering the ups and downs he's gone through just to reach this stage again.
As it is, he had it all and enjoyed the most out of his time with the Cleveland Cavaliers, wherein he made it to three straight NBA Finals and won the 2016 NBA Championship. But in the summer of 2017, he shockingly announced his intention to get traded, hoping to become the man of his own outside LeBron James ' towering shadow.
He arrived in the Boston Celtics, but the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. Unfortunately, he underperformed and failed to step up when it mattered the most as the leader of the youthful C's team, and their run fell apart after two seasons of disappointment.
The turmoil extended to Kai as he joined his hometown team, the Brooklyn Nets. Despite forming a superstar tandem with Kevin Durant, their lofty dreams of winning a title didn’t materialize in three and a half seasons. The star point guard also caused significant headaches for the franchise due to multiple controversies, including vaccine hesitancy, conspiracy theories, and the infamous promotion of a movie filled with antisemitic tropes.
A gratifying progress for Kyrie
Kyrie's move to Dallas provided him with the peace and stability he needed to move past his tumultuous history, as evident in both his play and off-court life. This gratifying rebirth with the Mavs has paid off, bringing him a few steps closer to winning his second championship.
“I'm grateful that I had these guys beside me and kept feeding me confidence and keep doing little things for one another,” Kai said of his teammates . “That made the celebration feel that much more better.”
The job is not finished yet for both him and the Mavs. But Kai certainly earned his right to celebrate his individual and developmental progress, which helped him rediscover his rightful state as one of the league's brightest stars after years of heartbreaks, disappointments, and controversies.
Related: “I shouldn’t have fouled him” - Shai Gilgeous-Alexander regrets the last-second foul on P.J. Washington that led to Dallas’ series win
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