The Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics will open up the 2017 NBA regular season tomorrow, as Kyrie Irving makes his return to Cleveland for the first time as a member of the Celtics.
According to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com, the Cavaliers will honor Kyrie with a video tribute, though it's unclear exactly when they will show the video package to fans inside Quicken Loans Arena.
Kyrie, 25, was drafted first overall by the Cavs back in 2011, was named Rookie of the Year and was named to four All-Star teams during his six seasons in Cleveland. Cavs fans certainly won't forget the clutch shot he hit in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals which clinched Cleveland's historic come from behind series victory.
However, just last week, Kyrie ruffled some feathers in Cleveland when he spoke about how Boston is "a real, live sports city," so it'll be interesting to see how much love he gets from the hometown crowd once he's officially introduced in green and white.
“Boston, I’m driving in and (thinking), ‘I’m really playing in a real, live sports city?’” Irving said, according to The Charlotte Observer.
“It’s exciting to be back on the East Coast,” said Irving, a New Jersey native. “It’s fast-paced. A lot of different cultures, food and people. You get it all, especially in Boston. You would go to Cleveland, and it would be at nighttime, and things would be going on, but you just see a vast difference.
"[Boston's] a really major city," Irving said, per Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. "Coming from Cleveland, the Midwest, where the culture is different. And then you move to the East Coast—into Boston—and it’s so real [and] alive. An ongoing, thriving city. Consistently. No matter what hour throughout the night."
Tomorrow night's game between the Cavs and Celtics will tip off at 8:00pm ET, airing on TNT.
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