The most expensive divorce in NBA history wasn’t about money, fame, or even championships. It was about a crown and the lonely, agonizing pain of standing just one step away from the throne.
One moment, you’re draining a championship clinching three-pointer over the outstretched arms of the greatest shooter of all time. The confetti is falling, and you are, unequivocally, a legend in the making. The next, you’re sitting alone in a silent locker room, a towel over your head, your feet in a bucket of ice, and the suffocating realization that this kingdom you helped build will never be yours.
This was the quiet, torturous reality for Kyrie Irving in the summer of 2017, a reality that led to a seismic trade request that shattered a dynasty, altered legacies, and became one of sports’ most poignant “what if?” stories .
Today, as a 33-year-old Kyrie Irving fights back from a devastating ACL tear, aiming for a dramatic late-January 2026 return for the Dallas Mavericks, the narrative has come full circle . He is no longer the young prince desperate for his own kingdom but a seasoned veteran who has seen the other side of glory.
In a moment of raw, public vulnerability, he looked back at his messy exit from Cleveland and uttered the words that change everything: “If I was in the same maturity line and understanding of who I am, and I look back, we definitely, definitely wouldâve won more championships”.
This is not just a story about basketball. It’s a story about the suffocating weight of playing second fiddle to a living god, the slow-burn agony of unexpressed ambition, and the profound regret that can only come with seeing your own reflection in the rearview mirror.
This is the true story of why Kyrie Irving left, how he suffered, and why his confession is a siren song for every superstar who thinks the grass is greener on the other side of the mountain.
Part I: The Unbearable Weight of the Shadow: Why Robin Had to Fly the Nest
To understand why Kyrie Irving walked away from a near guaranteed ticket to the NBA Finals every year, one must first grasp the unique psychological cage of playing alongside LeBron James. LeBron isn’t just a superstar; he is a basketball ecosystem.
He controls the tempo, dictates the offense, shapes the roster, and commands the narrative . For a player like Irving a No. 1 overall pick with generational one-on-one talent and a belief in his own destiny this ecosystem could feel less like a partnership and more like a planet orbiting a sun.
The seeds of discontent were not sown in malice, but in the mundane, day-to-day realities of greatness. Sources close to the Cavaliers detailed the ancillary slights that chipped away at Irving’s spirit: why LeBron’s best friend had a job on the team plane while his did not
why peers like Damian Lillard and John Wall were the unquestioned focal points of their franchises while he played in a system designed to maximize another’s vision . Even though Irving led the team in shots during their final season together, averaging a career-high 25.9 points, the feeling was one of constraint, not liberation .
The breaking point was a potent cocktail of professional stagnation and existential fear. LeBron James held a player option for the 2018-19 season. The specter of “The Decision 3.0” loomed over Cleveland. Irving, locked into his own contract, saw a future where he could be left holding the keys to a crumbling castle if LeBron chose to leave.
As one report bluntly put it, Irving “expressed that he ⊠no longer wants to play alongside LeBron James” and wanted to be “the focal point for an offense” . He wasn’t running from competition; he was running toward autonomy. On July 7, 2017, he walked into a meeting with Cavs owner Dan Gilbert and asked to be traded, preferring destinations like San Antonio, Miami, New York, or Minnesota teams where he could be the guy .
Part II: The Suffering: A Journey Through Regret, Injury, and Isolation
Kyrie Irving’s quest for a kingdom of his own did not lead to paradise. It led to a wilderness of unmet expectations, public friction, and physical anguish.
The Boston Experiment and the Thorns of Leadership: His trade to the Boston Celtics was supposed to be his coronation. Instead, it exposed the immense burden of being the leader. His two seasons were marred by injuries, cryptic public statements, and a reported disconnect with the Celtics’ young core.
The team often played better without him, a brutal indictment for a player seeking validation as a franchise centerpiece. The dream of being the beloved alpha disintegrated, replaced by the reality of complex team dynamics and the crushing pressure to carry a city’s title hopes alone.
The Brooklyn Saga and the Unraveling: His partnership with Kevin Durant in Brooklyn was born of friendship and a shared desire to write their own story, free from other superstars’ shadows. Yet, this era became defined by dysfunction: a refusal to get vaccinated that sidelined him for most of the 2021-22 home games, an antisemitic media post that led to a suspension, and a trade demand that forced his way out.
The suffering here was not just of the body, but of the spirit and reputation. The narrative shifted from “brilliant, misunderstood genius” to “unreliable superstar.”
The Physical Toll and the Agony of the Sidelines: The most visceral suffering has been physical. On March 3, 2025, as a Dallas Maverick, Irving drove to the basket against the Sacramento Kings. His left knee hyperextended in a grotesque, non-contact moment. He knew instantly.
He was in tears as he limped to the free-throw line, making two shots before exiting the game for what would be a year-long journey through pain and rehabilitation . A torn ACL is a brutal, season-ending injury that requires reconstructive surgery and a grueling 7-12 month rehab where athletes must rebuild their knee, their confidence, and their career from the ground up .
For a player whose game is built on otherworldly agility, impossible handles, and explosive bursts, the ACL tear was a direct attack on his identity. The rehab is “a drag, and it’s a hard rehab to go through,” as one orthopedic surgeon described .
It’s a monotonous, painful process of managing inflammation, regaining range of motion, and slowly re-learning how to run, jump, and trust a knee that has betrayed you. Irving has spoken of focusing on returning “150,000% better,” but the path is lined with doubt, frustration, and the haunting fear of never being the same player again .
Part III: The Confession: A Mature Reflection and the Ghosts of What Could Have Been
It is often in our lowest moments, away from the noise, that we gain the clearest vision. For Kyrie Irving, that moment came during a 2022 appearance on the “I Am Athlete” podcast. With the benefit of years, failed experiments, and hard-earned wisdom, he offered a stunning public mea culpa regarding his Cleveland exit.
“We didnât talk during that time,” Irving said of his fractured relationship with LeBron at the end. “I wish I did. Because it wouldâve been a good understanding of what the future will hold for both of us and we know how much power we both had together⊠It would have definitely been worth it. But for me, I threw all my chips in”.
This confession is the emotional core of the entire saga. It is an admission that his youthful desire for a crown blinded him to the power of a shared scepter. He acknowledges that his inability to communicateâ”I didnât know how to share my emotions”âwas a critical failure .
The most heartbreaking line is his assessment of their potential: “We definitely, definitely wouldâve won more championships”. He doesn’t just regret how he left; he regrets leaving at all. He now sees the Cleveland era not as a prison, but as a dynasty cut short by pride and poor communication.
This perspective changes everything. It reframes the suffering of his post-Cleveland journey not just as a search for a new home, but as a wandering in the desert, searching for something he’d already left behind. The rings in Boston or Brooklyn never materialized.
Part IV: The Phoenix? Dallas, Injury, and a Last Chance at a Different Legacy
Irving’s current chapter with the Dallas Mavericks represents a final, fascinating act. It is not the story of a young prince seeking a throne, but of a weathered king seeking a purpose. After the Mavericks’ shocking decision to trade Luka DonÄiÄâpartly due to the financial straitjacket of the NBA’s “supermax” and “second apron” tax rulesâthe team committed to Irving with a three-year, $118.5 million contract, complete with a player option and a 15% trade kicker, signaling their faith in him as a cornerstone .
His role is different now. He is the veteran leader, paired with young phenom Cooper Flagg and star big man Anthony Davis . The pressure is no longer to be “the man” in the way he once craved, but to be the stabilizing force, the closer, the wise head for a new generation.
His impending return from his ACL tear in late January 2026 is not just a comeback; it’s a resurrection . Can the artist, now with the maturity of regret and the scars of suffering, help guide a new team to the promised land? Or will his body, tested by years of high-wire athleticism and a major knee reconstruction, betray his still-brilliant mind?
The final suffering for Kyrie Irving may be the cruelest of all: the knowledge that his greatest chance at a timeless, multi-championship legacy was the one he voluntarily walked away from. His story is a cautionary tale about the grass not always being greener, about the difference between being under someone’s shadow and standing beside a giant.
As he steps back onto the court, the ghost of 2017 will be with him. Not as a taunt, but as a teacher. The kid who wanted to be Batman now understands the true burden of the cape. And in that understanding, in that hard-won maturity born of suffering, Kyrie Irving may finally find the peaceâand perhaps the legacyâhe has been searching for all along.