Perhaps the biggest story of the NBA offseason has been Kyrie Irving’s trade request.The Cavaliers point guard apparently wants to leave the only team he has ever played for, and a few tidbits of information have been revealed along the way which have helped explain the dramatic situation.Fox Sports’ Chris Broussard revealed a shocking aspect of the entire situation on Friday when he claimed that the Cavaliers had a deal in place before Irving found out about it. He said the following on “The Herd with Colin Cowherd”:“The final straw as to why he wanted out of Cleveland, or wants out of Cleveland, I’m told the Cavaliers had a deal done heading into the draft. This was reported by Cleveland Scene magazine, no one really picked it up, but I’ve talked to a few people who said it was true,” Broussard reported. “The deal was, Cleveland would send Kyrie to Phoenix, which does want Kyrie. Robert Sarver wants Kyrie Irving. They would send him to Phoenix. Phoenix would send Eric Bledsoe and the No. 4 pick back to the Cavaliers.”He continued, “The Cavaliers would send the No. 4 pick to Indiana for Paul George. So you’re getting Eric Bledsoe and Paul George for Kyrie Irving. Now, that was going to happen. Dan Gilbert goes to LeBron and says, ‘Look, we’ve got this deal on the table. I’ll do it if you commit long-term to stay in Cleveland.”
Therefore, the Cavaliers would have received both Eric Bledsoe and Paul George in exchange for Kyrie Irving. All LeBron needed to do was commit to stay in Cleveland long-term. But, he didn’t, and as a result, the deal fell through. That led to Irving eventually finding out about the trade that would have sent him packing. Shortly after, he demanded a trade, rightfully feeling unwanted.
“Now, Kyrie Irving finds out about the deal. Whether it was from David Griffin telling him after he left or however he found out. But he found out about the deal. And he assumed, he rightly assumed, that there’s no way the Cavaliers are doing this unless LeBron gives consent. That’s why he got mad with LeBron. He thought LeBron was in on it,” Broussard said.
The reporter continued, “LeBron’s take was more, ‘Look, I’m not trying to trade Kyrie Irving. He’s great. But that’s a heck of a deal—Eric Bledsoe and Paul George. So if you do it, hey, that’s a great deal.’ But Kyrie took it as LeBron wanted him out of there. A few days or a week later that’s when Kyrie made his trade request.”
If true, Broussard’s report reveals a very logical mindset for both Irving and James. It also poses the question of whether or not a starting five of Bledsoe, former MVP Derrick Rose (who signed with the team on a veteran’s minimum deal this summer), James, George and Tristan Thompson could have matched up against Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Draymond Green, Klay Thompson and the Golden State Warriors.
We will never know that answer.