Kyrie Irving had the perfect response to one Boston Celtic legend who had questioned his conditioning.
On October 20, eight-time NBA champion Tom Heinsohn suggested Irving looked slower than his usual self, hinting the Celtics point guard was carrying some extra padding.
"Personally, I think he's a little out of shape," Heinsohn said after Irving scored 16 points in 32 minutes against the New York Knicks.
"To me, it looks like he's a little overweight, and to me—his timing, his quickness—he's maybe an instant slower than he's been. With one darting move last year, he was able to get by three people. I don't think he's got quite that quickness back yet, but he's going to come along."
A week later, he reiterated his criticism of Irving. "To me, he looks like he's 5 pounds overweight, but I haven't seen him on the scale," Heinsohn said on Saturday. "He's just a half-a-step slow."
Heinsohn's opinion carries a lot of weight in Boston. Aside from the eight rings he won in a nine-year career as a player, the six-time All-Star led the Celtics to two titles as a coach in 1974 and 1976. His number 15 jersey also hangs from the rafters of the TD Garden.
Ten days after being called out by Heinsohn, Irving scored a season-high 31 points in 33 minutes, shooting 10-of-16 from the field as the Celtics beat the Detroit Pistons 108-105.
The performance was particularly encouraging as it came after Irving had scored just three points in 23 minutes against the Pistons three days earlier.
Speaking after the game, the 26-year-old revealed Heinsohn's comments had inspired him.
"It's always great when someone challenges you like that," he was quoted as saying by Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston.
"Especially with the respect level that I have for past Celtics legends.
"And for him to really kinda pinpoint as me being one of the leaders on this team, the main [focal] point of this team, I had to be in better shape as well as challenge myself on both ends of the floor. I think he made it very clear to me."
Irving is still working his way back to full fitness after undergoing surgery in April to remove two screws that were implanted during a procedure to stabilize the kneecap he fractured in the 2015 NBA Finals.
The five-time All-Star averaged 14 points and 5.5 assists in his first six starts this year. Last season, Irving averaged 24.2 points shooting 49.1 percent from the field and 5.1 assists across 60 games before his injury.
After a stuttering start, the Celtics are now 5-2 and third in the Eastern Conference. They will hope to extend their winning run to four games when they face the Milwaukee Bucks at the TD Garden on Thursday night.
Following the matchup against the Bucks—who are 7-0 and the only unbeaten team left in the NBA—the Celtics embark on a five-game road trip, which begins in Indiana on Saturday and ends in Portland on November 11.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
");jQuery(this).remove()}) jQuery('.start-slider').owlCarousel({loop:!1,margin:10,nav:!0,items:1}).on('changed.owl.carousel',function(event){var currentItem=event.item.index;var totalItems=event.item.count;if(currentItem===0){jQuery('.owl-prev').addClass('disabled')}else{jQuery('.owl-prev').removeClass('disabled')} if(currentItem===totalItems-1){jQuery('.owl-next').addClass('disabled')}else{jQuery('.owl-next').removeClass('disabled')}})}})})
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7r7HWrK6enZtjsLC5jqSwq6GVYrazwsinnmaflanAbq%2FApaOenF2kw6a%2B1p6goKCkYrGmuMivnKurXaWys7LEnKtmm5%2Bqv7V50Z6qqaeeqLJufZBya29oZg%3D%3D