Getty Kyrie Irving and the Celtics don't have a lot to worry about in the Eastern Conference.
The Boston Celtics would love to keep Kyrie Irving beyond the 2018-19 NBA season, but rumors of the star point guard potentially leaving town are already underway. Irving has a player option for the 2019-20 season, so he can choose to opt out and test the free agency waters, which most expect to happen.
The 26-year-old has already been linked to multiple teams, including ESPN’s Chris Haynes stating that the New York Knicks were on Irving’s wish list when the Cleveland Cavaliers traded him. And just recently, Knicks guard Tim Hardaway Jr. added some hype to the Irving rumors with a social media post, as Reddit user RealSteveScaf revealed.
https://www.reddit.com/r/NYKnicks/
It’s likely that Hardaway is just having some fun and getting the fanbase excited a bit. Regardless, even if the Knicks are able to land Irving next summer, there’s a full season ahead before that conversation even begins.
For good measure, though, Irving and Hardaway have been seen playing in various pickup games together, including one at Rucker Park earlier this month. The two obviously have struck up a friendship, and Knicks fans are likely hoping that can be used to help lure the five-time NBA All-Star to the Big Apple next offseason.
Irving is coming off his first season with the Celtics and played 60 games before a late-season injury sidelined him for the playoffs. He averaged 24.4 points, 5.1 assists and 3.8 rebounds while shooting a career-best 49.1 percent from the field.