Kyrie called Kobe for advice when told he might be traded to Suns
Fresh off the Cleveland Cavaliers' 2017 NBA Finals defeat, their starting point guard got word he might be traded to the Phoenix Suns.
Unsure of what to do, Kyrie Irving called on someone he's grown close to and trusts in Kobe Bryant.
"He was one of the guys that I reached out to," Irving recently told The Washington Post's Tim Bontemps. "Not necessarily to gauge his thoughts on the decision, or to give me the okay, but it was for some clarity and also what the next steps going forward (would be).
"Because there was some chance I was going to maybe be in Phoenix, or maybe in situations where the environment hadn't been winning for a while, and Kobe dealt with that in 2005-06, and that was tough. So I had to ask him, and gauge him about that."
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Bontemps noted the three-team trade would have seen Irving pack his bags for Phoenix, while Paul George (via the Pacers) and Eric Bledsoe would have joined LeBron James in Cleveland.
Though that deal collapsed, by then Irving was mentally prepared to move on, so he took matters into his own hands and asked to be traded. The request was met with criticism given Cleveland's success - including three straight Finals appearances and the 2016 title - but the flashy floor general, who grew up idolizing Bryant, had his mind made up and was ready to embrace a leading role elsewhere.
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The Cavaliers eventually traded Irving to the Boston Celtics in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and future draft picks. Irving has led his new club to the best record in the East - six games ahead of the team he left behind - and earned a starting All-Star nod alongside his former co-star on Team LeBron.
"After everything happened, (Bryant) was just super proud, and super happy," Irving added.
That's hardly surprising, considering Irving's doing things the Mamba way.