Kyrie Irving Reveals Greatest Lesson Learned During Time With Cavs

Brooklyn Nets superstar guard Kyrie Irving reflected back on his time with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday night.

Kyrie Irving and the Cleveland Cavaliers will always be tied together for years to come. The superstar guard helped win the Cavaliers win their first elusive NBA championship and had to endure lots of hard times in his six seasons with the organization. 

Since departing from Cleveland in 2017, the city has been on Irving's mind. Whenever he returns to Rocket Morgage Fieldhouse, he takes a moment to reflect on his past. On Monday night, he disclosed the biggest lesson he learned. 

"The greatest lesson I learned throughout that process was, it's not a lonely road that you're supposed to take on your own. It takes a lot of help," Irving said after the Nets' victory over the Cavs in Cleveland on Monday night. "We had a heck of a team here that did something special that's forever sketched in NBA history. No matter what they say about me or anybody else, you have to talk about that team." 

Irving was dealt to the Boston Celtics with a spotlight on him to be the No. 1 option for a young Eastern Conference team. Although the guard wasn't able to get over the top in Boston and is currently on the hunt for his second championship in Brooklyn, he spoke on the pressure he had to go through trying to prove he was a 'superhero.' 

"I had my first draft workout here, my only draft workout. The amount of pressure I was putting on myself coming in after LeBron James left, and I had to take on the ropes after that," Irving said. "Who knows if I was ever going to live up to that ability? But I put that pressure on myself to fill some shoes that were never meant for me. 

"I just wanted to create my own legacy. In order to do that, I had to endure some tough years where he had only a few thousand people in the stands. I was feeling at times going home feeling like a lone ranger or lone superhero trying to bring Cleveland back to the top."

Now over six years since he last wore a Cavaliers uniform, the memories always stay with him. In his words, 'Cleveland is never in the rearview.' 

"Cleveland is never in the rearview, but it's definitely something I look back on to remember what it takes to be a champion and how many years I had to endure of all the s**t talking and all the time of dealing with all of this," he stated. "Everything that comes with it. People doubting and that's what makes me great: continuing to focus on what I do best and just letting my play speak for itself."