Shumpert: Cavaliers weren't surprised to hear Irving demanded trade

It wasn't the fact that Kyrie Irving asked the Cleveland Cavaliers for a trade, but it was how the whole saga unfolded that bothered members of the roster, including guard Iman Shumpert.

"It’s all business man," Shumpert said on a recent episode of Complex's "Everyday Struggle." "But you got to think, though, they three (Irving, LeBron James, and Kevin Love) superstars, All-Stars, on one team. As frustrating as it is for me just to deal with that, for another superstar ...

"We all kinda knew about certain things about this team that was tough. It's tough."

When the news broke that Irving had approached management concerning a move out of town, further reports emerged over a potential fractured relationship with LeBron James, his unwillingness to report to training camp, and how he'd go days at a time without speaking to his teammates during the postseason.

Since Shumpert seemingly saw the writing on the wall, his only wish at that moment was for the split to happen quietly and behind closed doors - which ultimately wasn't the case.

"I didn’t expect it to happen how it happened. I didn’t expect it to be a big thing. It was a dragged-out thing," added Shumpert. "I don’t know how it was leaked.

"I know as a team, as a whole, when we all talked about it, when I talked to Kyrie about it ... just wish that it was more controlled in a sense that the fans didn’t have to have weird quotes, and is this true, is that true, and all this s--- coming out. We wished that it could have been, this trade happened. Boom. That’s it."

Irving was eventually dealt to the Boston Celtics for a package that included Isaiah Thomas and the Brooklyn Nets' coveted 2018 unprotected first-round pick.