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Kyrie Irving Regrets Middle Finger vs. Celtics: 'Wasn't a Great Reflection on My End'
During the postseason two years ago, Kyrie Irving gave Boston Celtics fans a one-finger salute after nailing a jumper in the corner.
There has never been much love lost between Boston fans and Irving after his short-lived stay with the Celtics. Irving even wiped his shoe on Lucky at center court back in 2021.
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But on Monday, he told reporters he regretted giving fans the finger:
"I will say last time in Boston, I don't think that was the best—not this regular season, but when we played in the playoffs and everyone saw me flip off the birds and kind of lose my s--t a little bit—that wasn't a great reflection of who I am and how I like to compete on a high level. It wasn't a great reflection on my end towards the next generation on what it means to control your emotions in that type of environment, no matter what people are yelling at you."
"I'm built for these moments, to be able to handle circumstances like that, and I've been able to grow since then. So of course it's going to be a hectic environment, but I'm looking forward to it and I see it as a healthy relationship that I have with the fans. I almost think about 'Gladiator,' just winning the crowd over. It is good to hear the TD Garden silent when you're playing well. They still respect great basketball."
Irving spent the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons in Boston and was an All-Star in each campaign, averaging 24.1 points and 6.1 assists across 127 total regular-season games.
He played in just one postseason with the team in 2018-19, losing in the second round. That was a disappointing result, considering the Celtics reached the Eastern Conference Finals the year prior without an injured Irving or Gordon Hayward.
Now, he'll be facing his former team with the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals. This year's version of the Celtics is stacked, led by Irving's former teammates in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown alongside offseason acquisitions in Kristaps Porziņģis and Jrue Holiday.
The Mavericks, however, have arguably the NBA's best, and most clutch, backcourt in Irving and Luka Dončić.
Irving told reporters that seeing Tatum and Brown—who were very early in their respective careers during his time in Boston—develop into one of the top duos in the NBA has made him "nothing short of proud."
"This basketball stuff is going to be competitive," he added. "No matter what, we're going to go at each other. But getting to know them as human beings, they're really special people alongside other people that I got a chance to know in the Boston organization."
Tatum spoke highly of his time with Irving as well.
"Yeah obviously there were some ups and downs but I think, for me, being a first-, second-year player, being around a superstar, essentially, every day and seeing how to navigate that space, and then obviously on the court, he's one of the most talented guys I've ever seen," he said. "So it seems like a very long time ago but I've got a lot of great memories from having Kai as a teammate."
Now, they'll be reunited with the ultimate prize on the line.
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