Kyrie Irving Throws Shade At LeBron James

Brooklyn Nets’ Kyrie Irving took a bit of a shot at LeBron James in a recent appearance on The ETCs Podcast with Kevin Durant.

Co-host Eddie Gonzalez asked Irving if there’s 10 seconds left in a one-point game, who is shooting the final shot, him or his Nets teammate Durant. 

“One thing I’ve always been comfortable with is I felt like I was the best option on every team I played for down the stretch,” Irving said. “This is the first time in my career where I can look down and be like, ‘That motherf—er can make that shot too.”

Irving played with James on the Cavaliers from 2014-2017. Together they led the franchise to its first championship in 2016, overcoming a 3-1 series deficit against the Golden State Warriors. 

It all came down to Game 7, when Irving famously made the go-ahead three-pointer with the score tied at 89-89 and less than 1 minute remaining. 

But James, a three-time NBA champion who has been to The Finals 10 times over his 17-season career, is also famous for making game-winners. 

In fact, according to The Ringer, he holds the record for the most postseason buzzer-beaters in league history with five.

Irving requested to be traded from the Cavaliers in 2017 because he reportedly did not want to play alongside James anymore. 

Now, James is on the brink of his fourth NBA championship after leading the Lakers to The Finals for the first time since 2010. In Game 1 against the Miami Heat on Wednesday, James was one assist shy of a triple-double, finishing with 25 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists in the Lakers’ 116-98 win. 

Despite their rocky past, James still has a lot of respect for Irving. 

Earlier in the playoffs, when James was asked if Anthony Davis is the best teammate he’s ever had, he made sure to mention Irving’s name in his response. 

“I’ve had some great teammates in my career,” James said Aug. 22. “AD is one of those unicorns and he does things that some of my other great teammates are not capable of doing. In the same sense, I played with Dwyane Wade, and he could do some things that AD is not capable of doing. And I also played with Kyrie Irving, and he did some things that AD and D Wade are not capable of doing. So I’ve had the luxury of playing with some great players and that’s just three of them.”