Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Kyrie Irving On Pressure Of Playing With LeBron James

Last summer, it was reported that Kyrie Irving wants to be the “focal point” of an NBA offense and has requested a trade to leave Cleveland.

Then, on August 22, 2017, Irving was traded to the Boston Cetlics in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic and a draft pick. Many outlets reported that LeBron James wasn’t happy about how Irving had forced his trade, and the two actually didn’t speak for a long time. Both sides even threw a little shade at the other party. But now, the two are on better terms again. Irving was guest on the Bill Simmons Podcast, and has opened up about the pressures of playing with LeBron James.

“I went from being in Cleveland to having half the fans show up to now ‘Bron shows up and now every night is packed, every road game is like a home game for us. You think of the media attention that comes with all of that and the elevated pressure of, ‘Now it’s championship or you fail.’ And then you gotta figure out how you fit within the system. Basketball is a systemic game. How do you build that strategy and how do you fit in with that? And it was tough.”