Despite his cemented role as an infamous Boston sports villain, Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving took the high road on Monday in the immediate aftermath of the Celtics’ championship celebration.
After getting pulled from Boston’s Game 5 clincher with a little over two minutes to go in regulation, Irving made sure to hug Joe Mazzulla and every Celtics player before walking back to Dallas’ bench in defeat.
Despite the evident sting that comes with losing to his former team — and a fanbase that’s more than happy to direct vitriol towards him — Irving opted to praise the Celtics at TD Garden as Boston celebrated its record-setting 18th championship.