Kyrie admits this moment at TD Garden ‘wasn’t a great reflection’ of himself originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Kyrie Irving knows what to expect every time he steps onto the TD Garden hardwood in the NBA Finals. The boos will be the loudest since the star point guard left the Boston Celtics in 2019 and became possibly the biggest sports villain in town.
Now with the Dallas Mavericks, Irving is committed to handling the hostile environment better than in years past.
The most glaring example of Irving caving in to the Garden crowd came in Game 1 of the 2022 first-round series between the C’s and the Brooklyn Nets. The eight-time All-Star showed the middle finger to fans twice during the confrontation.
On Monday, Irving expressed remorse for that incident.
“Last time in Boston, I don’t think it was the best, not in this regular season, but when we played in the playoffs and everyone saw me turn the birds and lose my mind a little bit. That wasn’t a great reflection of who I am and how I like to compete at a high level,” Irving told reporters. “There was a lot of reflection on my part to the next generation about what it means to control emotions in that type of environment, no matter what the people yell at you.
“I’m made for these moments, to be able to handle circumstances like that, and I’ve been able to grow since then. So of course it’s going to be a hectic environment, but I’m looking forward to it and I see it as a healthy relationship with the fans.”
Irving knows that the only way to silence the Garden crowd is to let his work speak for itself.
“I almost think of Gladiator just winning over the crowd,” he added. “It’s nice to hear TD Garden be quiet when you’re playing well. They still respect great basketball. So regardless of the attention that’s being paid to what it’s going to be on my end, I have a group to lead that’s going to look in me a voice of peace and being able to control what I can control and also help them overcome it.
“So I’ll take the brunt of it, all the yelling and stuff like that and all the comments, but I’ve been able to grow since then and recognize that I can handle things better, especially when I want to put most of my energy into playing well. I can’t just do that with the fans, although it can be fun sometimes, but it’s a waste of time and it’s also a waste of my talent trying to answer questions from the past that people have.
The 2024 NBA Finals will mark Irving’s third playoff series against Boston since leaving the C’s. If Irving can control his emotions in this series, it will be the first time. Before that 2022 middle finger incident, he infamously stomped on the Celtics logo at halfcourt during the 2021 Celtics-Nets playoff series. Another Kyrie-related dramatic moment at TD Garden seems inevitable.
The fun begins Thursday in Boston for Game 1 with kickoff scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET. Coverage begins on NBC Sports Boston with Celtics pregame live at 7pm