As the New York Knicks await July 1, Kyrie Irving’s situation with the Boston Celtics is fluctuating.
“Will they or won’t they sign?” That has surrounded Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving with the New York Knicks since the 2018-19 season started. Even as both navigate potential championship — or conference finals — caliber seasons.
The Golden State Warriors playing elite basketball has kept Durant’s situation somewhat quieter than Irving’s, as Boston has played below expectations and continues to feature eye-opening comments.
The latest from the 2016 NBA champion, was a comment on the spotlight, per Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe:
Kyrie: "I didn’t really come into this game for there to be cameras in my face, be famous, be a celebrity, so it’s a little hard for me. I wanted those things when I was younger but at this point in my career, I just want to play basketball at a very, very high level.” #Celtics
— gary washburn (@GwashburnGlobe) March 4, 2019
Playing basketball in New York offers a spotlight unlike almost anything else in the NBA, and it’s difficult to think cameras won’t be in his face if this Knicks fantasy becomes a reality.
At this point, though, no matter where Irving goes, fame or attention will follow, which started after the trade request to leave LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2017 to lead his own team. Results for that have been mixed, with the Celtics succeeding in the 2018 postseason without him and winning their seventh straight game when he doesn’t play; Boston defeated the Sacramento Kings, 111-109, on Wednesday.
Once Irving signs a lucrative contract in free agency, even with Boston, that will enhance the spotlight. He will be the new, (probably) max contract player, and if it’s with the Knicks, there’s little doubt about the posters, the billboards, commercials and merchandise flying around the Tri-State area. Let alone the interviews and other media appearances.
If all Irving wants to do is play basketball, he can certainly do that in New York, with a hungry fanbase that eyes a playoff team. So maybe he’s past things like Uncle Drew. At the same time, the 26-year-old will produce and star in a horror film. Who knows — it could be the last time he appears in a movie.
Irving will have a spotlight on him, whether for basketball or other media projects. It’s inevitable in 2019, when social media rules all and everything he says or does is dissected. The attention won’t disappear, but it will be about watching what’s said and avoiding the reactionary outbursts that usually follow.