Kyrie Irving's Free-Agency Countdown Officially Begins Now
After Wednesday night's 116-91 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks that cemented a 4-1 defeat in the Eastern Conference semifinals, Kyrie Irving had produced the following shooting lines in his final four appearances with the 2018-19 Boston Celtics: 4-of-18, 8-of-22, 7-of-22 and 6-of-21.
Boston lost all four contests. After they stole Game 1 of the series against the East's No. 1 seed, the Celtics are heading into the offseason—and 2019-20—on the wrong end of a gentlemen's sweep.
The question now: Will Irving head there with them?
Following the season-ending loss, Irving predictably sidestepped questions about free agency.
"I'll be honest with you," he said, per ESPN's Tim Bontemps. "I'm just trying to get back to Boston safely, spend time with my friends and family, decompress, do what human being[s] do."
While that's slightly more promising than the "Ask me July 1" he gave reporters in February, it certainly shouldn't inspire much confidence for Celtics fans hoping to get their starting point guard back.
After a season of Irving's philosophy sessions and quotes about the "young guys," who knows how many of those are even left.
"I want it to end," Boston superfan Bill Simmons said on his podcast prior to Game 5. "I want it to be over. I can't take it anymore. It's everything I hate about basketball. Hero ball. Twenty-five footers. S--tty defense. Finger pointing. It's like the perfect storm of things I hate watching a basketball team."
Of course, Simmons isn't representative of every Celtics fan. But the writing has been on the wall for a potential departure during most of this turbulent season. Kyrie himself did the writing plenty of times.
Right now, his future is the biggest question for Boston. But it won't be the only one, and plenty more dominoes could fall before or after July 1.
For one, the full-house Anthony Davis trade package president of basketball operations Danny Ainge was reluctant to offer midway through the 2018-19 campaign could now make its way to the table this summer.
Would Kyrie be more willing to re-sign if Davis is wearing a Celtics uniform instead of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, picks and whatever salary fodder is needed to complete a blockbuster deal? Would mortgaging the future make any sense if Kyrie is as good as out the door?
These are the difficult questions Boston's front office must now answer.
Beyond that, Terry Rozier is a free agent. Al Horford has a player option he may turn down if everything falls apart. Tatum could very well be the centerpiece of the team by 2019-20's opening night.
Heading into this season, few teams were as hyped as this one. Its over/under was set at 57.5 wins. Seven months later, few enter this offseason surrounded by as much uncertainty.
For Kyrie, the decision (assuming it hasn't already been made) could come down to which NBA experience he prefers.
As the clear No. 1 for the Heatles-era Cleveland Cavaliers, Irving was able to stack up big numbers on a bad team that drew little national attention. As LeBron James' No. 2 in Cleveland, he hit a legendary shot on the way to a title against one of the best teams of all time. As Boston's alpha, he helped usher in the type of circus from which he was seemingly running away when he asked the Cavs to trade him.
Does Kyrie still believe he can be the guy on a championship-winning team? Or does he now see some advantages may have existed when playing second fiddle?
The Los Angeles Lakers are obviously in flux, but a reunion with LeBron doesn't feel as impossible as it did before this season. In January, Irving said he called LeBron to apologize for his own immaturity when they were teammates.
Then, of course, we have the Kevin Durant rumors.
"It will seem weird if Durant and Irving, after all this stress and drama, really decide to team up in New York (or elsewhere)," The Ringer's Dan Devine wrote. "But it might also be the sort of reset-button smash the league could use—a monopoly busted, a Pangaea separated, a restoration of balance, or something like it."
Scenarios exist in which that partnership could materialize for the New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets or Los Angeles Clippers. Maybe some other team comes out of nowhere with cap gymnastics and creates another possibility.
Regardless of the location, Durant and Irving would probably create an instant contender if they teamed up. And if Kyrie's looking for a silver lining after the pounding he just took at the hands of the Bucks, it's that. He has a tough choice to make, but he's still a top-20 talent in the NBA.
Whether he's a Celtic, Knick, Net or Clipper, he'll have a chance to win big.
