Irving: 'My life's changed drastically' since Game 7 shot
Life just hasn't been the same for Kyrie Irving since his infamous Game 7 shot helped the Cleveland Cavaliers hoist the first title in franchise history.
"My life's changed drastically," Irving told Joe Vardon of cleveland.com. "It's kind of, you're waiting for that validation from everyone, I guess, to be considered one of the top players in the league at the highest stage. That kind of changed. I was just trying to earn everyone's respect as much as I could."
Irving's dagger three may have cemented his reputation as one of the NBA's preeminent point guards, but his performance in last year's postseason would've been considered special even if he didn't make the title-winning shot. The 6-foot-3 guard averaged 25.2 points, 4.7 assists and 1.7 steals during the 2016 playoffs, and outplayed two-MVP Steph Curry for much of the Finals.
"I never thought I'd be an NBA champion when I was 24 years old," Irving said. "I just had to re-start, regroup and re-prioritize what I wanted to accomplish as a player and also as a teammate, this summer."
Irving followed his dominant Finals performance with an impressive showing at the Rio Olympics, contributing to Team USA's third straight gold medal. In doing so, the former first overall pick became just the fourth player to win a title and Olympic gold in the same summer, joining LeBron James, Scottie Pippen and Michael Jordan.
Irving is hoping to continue his commanding play into the upcoming season, as the Cavaliers look to defend their title.