LeBron James, Kyrie Irving Need to Fight, Says Drew Gooden

When asked Friday if Cleveland Cavaliers superstars LeBron James and Kyrie Irving could work out their issues, former NBA forward Drew Gooden offered a unique solution.

Gooden suggested to TMZ Sports that LeBron and Kyrie should fight each other in an effort to get out their frustrations:

Gooden spent parts of four seasons as James' teammate with the Cavs from 2004 through 2008.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported last week that Irving requested a trade so that he would no longer have to play second fiddle to James.

ESPN's Stephen A. Smith (h/t Ryan Glasspiegel of The Big Lead) recently reported that LeBron would be tempted to "beat [Irving's] ass" if the situation presented itself.

In response to that, James denied he had any such desire:

As teammates for the past three seasons, Irving and James have ushered in the most successful era in Cavaliers history.

They have reached the NBA Finals in three straight seasons, and they won the first championship in franchise history in 2016.

LeBron is undoubtedly the leader, but Irving did enjoy a career year in 2016-17 with 25.2 points per game during the regular season and 25.9 points per contest in the playoffs.

While there is clearly dissension in the ranks, it is possible James and Irving will have to get back on the same page since the Cavaliers aren't obligated to trade Kyrie with two years and a player option left on his contract.