Why the Sixers should not trade for Kyrie Irving: Bad teammate
Lastly, and certainly not least, is the fact that Kyrie is a bad teammate. Everything on the prior two slides could be repurposed for this slide too. His selfishness and off-court behavior directly speak to the point of being a bad teammate, but there are additional examples here as well.
Go back to Kyrie’s time with the Cleveland Cavaliers during LeBron James’ tenure there. Kyrie had issues playing with LeBron which is not overly difficult to believe at face level. LeBron is a monumental personality and takes the majority of team and national media attention, however winning usually cures all. That has consistently been the case with all of LeBron’s other teammates and Kyrie appears to be in the minority.
Towards the end of Kyrie’s tenure in Cleveland, there were even reports that he would not talk to any teammates in the locker room. This was right in the middle of a playoff run when the Cavaliers were hoping to win another NBA Championship.
Upon Kyrie’s abrupt departure from Cleveland and subsequent arrival in Boston, the problems followed him, proving again that he is the common denominator. Not only did Kyrie make the fans believe he wanted to sign long-term with the Celtics. Bleacher Report reported teammates also said he was “hard to play with” and that “It’s all about him” (the definition of selfishness).
Kyrie has not made friends anywhere he has played and that includes with the media, the fans, and most importantly his teammates and coaches. He has most recently created unnecessary problems and stress in Brooklyn for Kevin Durant, James Harden, and first-time head coach Steve Nash.
At 29 years old, and with his incredible basketball talent, his NBA career is far from over. I just want nothing to do with Kyrie playing, that word used very loosely, for the Philadelphia 76ers. His uncertain playing status, off-court problems and chemistry issues far outweigh the on-court benefit he provides.