He's Gone! Kyrie Irving traded to Boston

The clouds have finally lifted in Cleveland as the Kyrie Irving era has ended as the mercurial point guard was traded to the Boston Celtics,of all teams for an interesting collection that might see those teams and players slug it out for Eastern Conference supremacy.

Cleveland's return for Irving looks to be as strong as could have been expected when you consider the wall that the franchise had been put up against by the demand of Irving to be moved.

Isaiah Thomas brings an stat line that is comparable to Irving's,although his circumstances were far different than they will be in Cleveland and it'll be interesting to see how the hip injury that ended his season in the playoffs last year has healed.

I'm not saying this has a chance of happening,but I wonder how the deal potentially could be affected,should Thomas's injury be in an issue in the physical that traded players go through.

Thomas uses his quickness and speed to make plays instead of his size (5'9) as physically he doesn't always match well with larger guards,especially on the defensive end.

For these purposes,let's assume Thomas is at 100 percent and brings a motivated (free agent at the end of the season) point guard that will instantly replace Irving at that position.

Thomas excels at the pick and roll and I think his game will mesh pretty well with that of LeBron James.

Jae Crowder brings an excellent defender that can hit a three pointer (39.8 from three point land last year) and averaged 13.8 points per game.

Crowder started for Boston,but likely will be a key part of the second unit as a Cavalier and I think Crowder's arrival will save at least a few minutes a game on average on the wheels of LeBron James-minutes that will be vital in the playoffs as far as fatigue goes.

Crowder's game is rough and physical and he doesn't mind doing the dirty work under the boards and into the lane.

Crowder is signed through 2020 and I think he will be a perfect match for a Cleveland need...

Ante Zizic is another one of those Euro lottery tickets that so many teams take flyers on in the draft.

Much like the Cavaliers did with Cedi Osman a few years back,Boston took Zizic in round one (23rd overall) in the 2016 draft and signed him last month,so Zizic will be a Cavalier this season.

The seven footer from Croatia averaged just under ten points per game in 20 Euroleague (Highest level of play in Europe) games last season.

Zizic appears to be a project,but he's younger (20) than most Euro big men that come over,so there may be an upside to him as the third player in the trade.

Alas the most important player in the long term is not even a player yet-the unprotected 2018 first rounder of the Brooklyn Nets,the worst team in the league last season.

The Nets have added a few players (DeAngelo Russell from the Lakers,Allen Crabbe from the Trail Blazers,DeMarre Carroll from the Raptors) that should improve them and I wouldn't think Brooklyn is a slam dunk to be the worst team this season,but that pick is a slam dunk to be in the top 10 and I think it might even be one to be in the top five.

That pick sets up the Cavaliers in one of two ways (as long as Brooklyn doesn't improve more than expected).

The first would be in drafting a building block for the future in the event that LeBron James left for other courts after this season.

I believe with Kevin Love,Jae Crowder,a top five pick etc would be a playoff team in the weaker Eastern Conference,although not a title contender and this pick positions the Cavaliers for a LeBron less future.

The second would be that depending on the pick and on the player selected,LeBron James might be more amenable to staying in Cleveland.

Adding a young wingman that could ease the long term transition that comes with aging for James could be just the ticket for James to consider re-signing.

As for Kyrie Irving.

I'll miss his ability and his talent,but I think he'll be easier to replace than one thinks and that's not sour grapes.

I've said and written for quite a while that I've thought that Kyrie Irving is more of a true 2 guard than a point guard and his shots per game (Irving shot more last season per game than LeBron James) bear that out.

The game has changed,so one doesn't have to be a pass first point guard to succeed in today's league,but I remember the Irving Cavaliers before the return of LeBron James and he may not be the type of player that raises other players level.

Kyrie Irving sure is exciting and fun to watch,but also has never been an iron man in being able to stay on the floor and I'm interested to see how he deals with adversity in the Boston press,a corps never noted for soft shoeing in the past.

I'll always be grateful for Kyrie Irving's performance in bringing the Cavaliers their championship and I'll always remember him fondly for the championship deciding shot.

I'll also always remember that he demanded this trade because he thought he was better than having to share the floor with the greatest player of his time.

Memories do work both ways...

In closing,give new general manager Koby Altman a hand.

Altman's first major move saw the Cavaliers receive far more than almost anyone could have thought when news of the trade demand of Kyrie Irving leaked.

A top level guard (assuming the hip is fine),a gritty role player that championship teams always need,a potential usable big man and a potential impact player from the 2018 draft is far more than I would have thought the Cavaliers would have gotten,so give credit to Koby Altman for that.

Still,I would have rather not had this been needed-I'm still stunned that Kyrie Irving's need to be number one outweighed winning.

That might just be the eventual epitaph for one young man's career....

Back later with a cleaning of the inbox that will include some Browns talk....