Kyrie Irving wanted out of Cleveland so bad that he was reportedly willing to undergo a knee surgery and sit out for the entire season if the Cavs did not agree to trade him.
According to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com, Kyrie threatened to wait until the season started before going under the knife, which would've left the Cavs without a starting point guard.
While Kyrie might still feel some discomfort in his knee it's obviously not anything he can't play through. Boston's All-Star point guard is averaging 24.5 points per night and shooting a career-high 47.7% from the field for the first place Celtics.
Joe Vardon writes of Kyrie's trade request,
"Gilbert didn't have to honor the request, though, as Irving had two years left on his contract. But according to multiple sources, Irving threatened to sit out the season and have surgery on his knee, convincing Gilbert and Cleveland's front office that the relationship was not salvageable."
"Such a procedure is typically done in the offseason, but he threatened to not come to training camp (first reported by ESPN) and then have the procedure during the season, leaving the Cavs without a point guard."
"The Cavs chose to move Irving rather than call his bluff, which upset James, sources said. Irving has millions of dollars in endorsements, including with Nike, and missing the year may have impeded one of his career goals of growing his brand."
Kyrie and the Celtics are sitting in first place in the Eastern Conference with a 35-14 record.