With how things ended between Kyrie Irving and the Celtics five years ago, there is no doubt bad blood between him and the Boston faithful. This became rather evident during Game 1 of the finals last night as his arrival to the TD Garden was met with deafening boos from the crowd. While that kind of reception was expected, it did manage to do it’s job – throwing Kyrie off his game. Seeing the Mavs’ downfall in yesterday’s encounter, veteran analyst Stephen A. Smith reminded Kyrie of a similar situation Draymond Green faced two years ago upon his visit to Boston.

Addressing Dallas’ loss on The Stephen A. Smith Show, the ESPN veteran revealed that last night marked Kyrie’s eleventh straight loss to the Celtics, blaming it on one concerning issue, “Kyrie was rattled by that Boston Celtics crowd.” Chanting “Kyrie Sucks!” and filling the arena with boos every time he touched the ball, crowd played a huge role in Kyrie’s awful shooting night.

Not being able to channel his inner Uncle Drew mode, Kyrie finished with only twelve points on six of nineteen shooting from the floor. And Stephen A. warned him, “Just ask Draymond Green about how they treated him two years ago.” When Draymond visited the Celtics arena two years ago during their finals’ matchup, he was also taken aback by the hostile environment in the building. “At Game 3, I was f**king rattled. I heard everything you could possibly hear in that arena.” Green said about his experience. In that game, a rattled Green could score only two points. Citing that example, Stephen A. claimed that if the Mavs want to win this series, Kyrie will somehow have to overcome this barrier and unleash his actual game.

Why do the Celtics fans despise Kyrie Irving?

“I thought it was going to be a little louder in here but I’m expecting the same things going into Game 2.” After last night’s loss, Kyrie claimed that he expects a similar reception for the next game. But why are the Boston faithful spewing so much venom at the Mavs superstar? While one reason is to not let him perform at his best and help the Celtics win, another major reason is that they still haven’t forgiven him for what happened in 2019.

With an arena full of fans and the whole world watching, Kyrie made a huge promise to the Celtics fans, “If you guys will have me back, I plan on re-signing here next year.” Even the fans were excited after the announcement as they responded with loud cheers and applause. But that very summer, Kyrie broke his promise and the fans’ hearts and joined the Brooklyn Nets. Then, upon his return to the arena in 2021, he made another disrespectful gesture by wiping his shoes on the Celtics on court logo, angering the fans even more.

“Everybody is gonna move beyond that but the Boston faithful.” Stephen A. Smith claimed. So, using his Championship experience and digging deep, Kyrie needs to overcome this challenge and help his team get back in this series.

Before you go, do not forget to check out how Caitlin Clark’s humility despite the negativity surrounding her is impressing Shaquille O’Neal’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato. Keep checking this space for more such updates.