'Lays Back in His Chair for About 10 Minutes, Doesn’t Say a Word:' Tyronn Lue Reveals LeBron James Was ‘Crushed’ When Kyrie Irving Was Traded From Cleveland Cavaliers to Boston Celtics

Los Angeles Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue revealed NBA legend LeBron James was “crushed” when Kyrie Irving was traded from the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Boston Celtics in August 2017.

Irving requested a trade from the Cavaliers and was traded to the Celtics.

“Bron was doing an autograph signing with jerseys and stuff for his foundation,” Lue said on Club Shay Shay with NFL Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe. “So I come sit next to Bron. We sitting there, hand him the phone, SportsCenter, ‘Kyrie Irving’s just been traded to the Boston Celtics.’

“Bron dropped the marker and just lays back in his chair for about 10 minutes, doesn’t say a word, like pissed off. And Bron was crushed. And I saw when that happened, I thought Bron would do something different sooner than later and that’s what he did.”

James and Irving were teammates for three seasons in Cleveland. The two superstars went to three consecutive NBA Finals, winning the 2016 championship against the Golden State Warriors in seven games.

The 2016 Cavaliers are the only team in NBA history to erase a 3-1 series deficit in the NBA Finals.

James left Cleveland in 2018 for the Los Angeles Lakers during free agency, while Lue was fired by the Cavaliers in October 2018.

“He (Kyrie) had made his mind up,” Lue said. “But that’s like another Kobe (Bryant) and Shaq (Shaquille O’Neal). I would never let it happen. And I begged and pleaded. I begged and pleaded.”

Irving spent two seasons with the Celtics before signing with the Brooklyn Nets in 2019. The nine-time All-Star requested a trade from the Nets during the 2022-23 season and was traded to the Dallas Mavericks in February 2023.

James won his fourth championship and fourth Finals MVP with the Lakers in 2020. The leading scorer in NBA history becomes an unrestricted free agent next offseason for the first time since 2018.

If James doesn’t retire from the NBA after next season, some people believe the future Hall of Famer may sign with the Mavericks to reunite with Irving, Anthony Davis, Jason Kidd and Phil Handy.