During the uncertainty surrounding LeBron James‘ free agency—before he ultimately chose the Philadelphia 76ers—rumors surfaced regarding a potential return to the Cleveland Cavaliers. James reportedly was angling for Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving to reunite with him on the Cavaliers, but Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal claims the guard would not have wanted that.
O’Neal made some interesting comments when that report was brought up on the latest episode of The Big Podcast with Shaq. During the conversation, Adam Lefkoe mentioned hearing about the possibility of LeBron joining Cleveland and bringing Kyrie Irving along, but Shaq offered a blunt response.
“Kyrie ain’t letting that happen,” O’Neal said. Iman Shumpert, who played with both stars on the Cavaliers and was present on the podcast, pointed out that Irving could not really have stopped this from happening, as the Mavericks could trade him without his consent. The 34-year-old does not have a no-trade clause that would allow him to control where he goes.
Shaq’s point
O’Neal’s primary point, though, is that Irving does not want to team up with James again. That is quite interesting. Irving and James previously had been teammates on the Cavaliers from 2014 to 2017. They won a championship together in 2016 by stunningly overturning a 3-1 deficit in the NBA Finals against the 73-9 Golden State Warriors.
Kyrie Irving
The Warriors would win the rematch against the Cavaliers in the 2017 NBA Finals, and that was the last time we saw the duo together. Irving asked out during the 2017 offseason, reportedly because he no longer wanted to play a secondary role behind James. The Cavaliers would then trade him to the Boston Celtics to end what had been an incredibly successful partnership.
The reason why a James-Irving reunion on the Cavaliers was highly unlikely was that the Mavericks did not want to trade him. The nine-time All-Star, who missed all of last season with a torn ACL, was not going to push for a move, either, as he is comfortable with his situation.
Past rumors of Irving pursuing James
It should not be forgotten that Irving reportedly pushed for the Mavericks to acquire James in 2023. He was even said to have tried to persuade his former teammate to join him in Dallas. It was not to be, though.
