Kyrie Irving on Nets Closing Series vs. Celtics: 'I'm Glad It's Settled'

Kyrie Irving's history with the Boston Celtics and the city in general became a major storyline during the Brooklyn Nets' first-round series against the Celtics. 

But with the Nets eliminating Boston in five games with Tuesday's 123-109 win, Irving had a chance to reflect on what it meant facing his old team:

"I'm grateful for the opportunity I had in Boston. I'm grateful for a lot of the support I had post-leaving there. Obviously it wasn't the easiest transition to deal with, there was a lot going on personally while I was there in Boston that not a lot of people know about. So to see the emotions that were lingering on for the past year-and-a-half, I'm just glad it's settled. For me we can just move on and focus on the rest of this long season we have ahead."

Irving was excellent in the series, averaging 24.8 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. But much of the coverage surrounding the matchup focused on non-basketball topics. 

For one, Irving told reporters last week he had dealt with racist Boston fans in the past:

"It’s not my first time being an opponent in Boston. So I’m just looking forward to competing with my teammates and hopefully we can just keep it strictly basketball, there’s no belligerence or any racism going on. Subtle racism and people yelling s--t from the crowd. But even if it is, that’s just the nature of the game, and we’re just going to focus on what we can control."

“I’m not the only one who can attest to this,” he added when further asked about facing racism from Boston fans. “It is what it is. The whole world knows it.”

Then there was Irving's light stomp on Lucky, the Celtics mascot painted on the halfcourt, after Game 4:

Moments after that, Celtics fan Cole Buckley threw a water bottle at Irving and was promptly arrested and charged with assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon.

On the court there was very little incident, with the Nets handling their business against the shorthanded Celtics. A second-round matchup with the Milwaukee Bucks expects to be a far more difficult showdown. 

And Irving seemed at least a little relieved to put Boston behind him on Tuesday.