Last month, Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving requested a trade in a private meeting with team owner Dan Gilbert and newly-appointed general manager Koby Altman. Now, a few weeks removed from said meeting, all forms of media are weighing in with an opinion on the matter, including Charles Barkley.
“I don’t understand the Kyrie situation,” Barkley told NBA TV on Wednesday. “Like, you know, this generation of players — you want to be on a great team, you want to play with other great players. This notion of where you want to be ‘the man,’ I just think it’s so stupid. Like, if I got a chance to play with another great player, I want to do that. I mean, you know, the objective is to win. When you’re on a bad team, when he was on a bad team and he was ‘the man,’ I guarantee you that wasn’t a lot of fun for him. And now, you want to leave the best player in the world?”
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There is no doubt that Irving has played a major role in the Cavs’ recent success. In his 72 games played for the Wine and Gold last season, “Uncle Drew,” as he is known, averaged a career-high 25.2 points on 47% shooting from the field (career-high), 5.8 assists, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.2 steals in 35.1 minutes per contest.
At this point, whether or not Irving will be traded can only be speculated on. Some experts say trade him now, while others think this sticky situation can be resolved. For now, it seems this saga will play on.