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#8 Kyrie Irving shocks the world with a trade request
No one saw this one coming! After getting blown away in the NBA Finals by the Warriors, the Cleveland Cavaliers encountered a new problem in the offseason. Irving shocked pretty much everyone by demanding to be traded away from the Cavs, as he supposedly had had enough of playing with LeBron James. It was quite puzzling considering all the praise Kyrie had showered on James after the Finals loss.
With all the talk around moving Kevin Love to get a better 3rd wheel for Irving and James, the Cavs now had a whole new problem to deal with. After weeks of speculation, they traded him to the Boston Celtics and the deal might end up being a win-win for both sides, for Cleveland in the short run and the Celtics for the future.
After a rough start, Jae Crowder seems to be adjusting to new surroundings and Isaiah Thomas has finally returned from injury and looks good. The Nets pick, however, might not be a top 5 pick as they'd have hoped but it'll still be a pretty good one. Irving meanwhile is thriving in Boston and if Gordon Hayward was healthy, they might have had a chance at knocking off the Cavs in the playoffs. Nevertheless, this trade is likely to have serious long-term implications in the East and it has set up the Celtics to dominate the Conference for years.
