Kyrie Irving 'Cool' with Collin Sexton Wearing Old No. 2 Jersey with Cavaliers
There's a new No. 2 in Cleveland, and that's fine with the player who played a key role in bringing a championship to The Land while wearing the number.
After the Cleveland Cavaliers took Collin Sexton with the eighth overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft, it was revealed that he'd wear the same number (No. 2) in the pros that he did in college. Kyrie Irving—the number's most recent owner—doesn't have a problem with it.
"Go ahead, do what you do," Irving told reporters Monday. "He wanted to wear the number, let him wear the number. It doesn't matter."
The fact that Cleveland is letting an unproven player wear Irving's old number may not sit well with everyone. After all, Irving hit the go-ahead shot late in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals to give the Cavs their first title.
Even if he forced his way out of town, the now-Boston Celtics guard knows he will forever have a place in Cleveland sports lore:
"The history, it's already captured, man. I was on one of the best teams in NBA history, in my opinion, just accomplishing something that was that much bigger than ourselves. A feat that's—we're one of no other teams. We're one of one, in history. So for me, I think the biggest thing is giving that jersey to my dad. If that's where the No. 2 legacy ends, then cool. Then I'm starting up a new one. No pressure for anyone else."
There's no denying Irving will go down as one of the greatest players in the history of the Cavs, even if he only played six seasons for the organization. The No. 1 overall pick in 2011, he won NBA Rookie of the Year, made four All-Star teams and, of course, made the biggest shot in franchise history.
A player with a resume like that could warrant a jersey retirement. In this case, however, Irving's lack of longevity worked against him. While he appreciates those who want to see his jersey in the rafters, he understands the nature of the game:
"I gave a lot of commitment and sacrifice to being there from Day 1. So to have that six-year span of doing some unbelievable things, I'm definitely happy about it. Never shy away from that in terms of Cleveland giving me an opportunity to be a 19-year-old kid wearing No. 2. It's just the transition in the league. It happens all the time. The story is probably going to [be] the number. But I'm more excited about who [Sexton] is as a player in the league. The number thing is like, just chalk that up to the game. It's cool. It's no hard feelings from my end. He just has to start at the chopping block just like everyone else did. So I'm excited for him."
To be fair, Cleveland did not give the number away in the first season of the post-Irving era. At some point, though, a team moves on if it decides the number is not going to be retired.
Sexton—who was taken with the draft pick that was the centerpiece of the Irving trade—also downplayed the storyline.
"I feel like I'm not going to have to live up to anybody's shoes," Sexton said in his introductory press conference. "I'm going to come in and learn and be the best player I can be on the court as well as off the court."
As much as the outside world wants to make a big deal out of the number, the players themselves are not taking the bait.
