The Cleveland Cavaliers training camp has gotten underway and with a Dwyane Wade-less roster, as he attends to personal matters, the new-look team took part in some basics along with their pre-season media obligations.
Among them was J.R. Smith, who was sporting a pair of Kyrie Irving’ signature kicks — the Nike Kyrie 3’s in Cool Grey colorway — to the surprise of many in the media.
While Smith is a Nike athlete and reserves the right to wear whatever signature or non-signature line he pleases, as long as it is from the brand; this surely is a bit that won’t go over well with the likes of LeBron James, who left early with an ankle injury. When asked about the kicks, Smith said, “They still work. I’m too old for that childish stuff.”
Despite leaving by requesting a trade, Irving was a popular character in the locker room, as teammates had expressed support and good faith following his move to the Boston Celtics.
James called Irving a “kid” during Media Day, some say calculatedly so — the same way as he’s chosen to call President Donald Trump “that guy” during his media obligations.
Smith is believed to have lost his spot to Dwyane Wade as the starting shooting guard of the team, but Tyronn Lue’s second unit during the first day of practice featured Wade, Iman Shumpert, Tristan Thompson, Kyle Korver, and Jeff Green, according to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com.