Kyrie Irving on Boston Celtics: ‘Who wouldn’t be a part of this?’

Rumors have swirled around Kyrie Irving all summer — does he want to sign in New York next summer? Does he want to play with Jimmy Butler? Does it mean anything that he didn’t sign an extension with the Celtics?

In order: Shrug, shrug and no. He was never going to sign the extension, which guaranteed significantly less money than promised by a completely new max contract with the Celtics signed in the summer of 2019. Irving said as much in his lone interview with Boston media this summer. Signing a new deal didn’t make sense, and little should be made of his decision to pass.

Of course, much was made of it. Summer storylines are beaten to death every year, and absent any other drama surrounding the Celtics, questions about Irving’s desire to be in Boston were a well many went back to over and over (full disclosure: I’m as guilty of it as anyone).

ESPN’s Jackie MacMullan went straight to the source.

“Who wouldn’t be a part of this?” Irving said to MacMullan in an interview published Friday. “Who wouldn’t want to be a part of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum and Al Horford and Gordon Hayward? People keep saying, ‘Why won’t he commit to Boston?’

“Well, there are financial implications involved.”

There’s a lot more in MacMullan’s piece, including Irving’s thoughts on Jimmy Butler — the two haven’t spoken about a potential destination together since 2016 — as well as Irving’s health (he’s feeling really, really good again).

But the most important part of the piece — the part that will be picked apart and analyzed, and then inevitably revisited at Celtics Media Day on Monday — is what Irving had to say about Boston at a time when the noise about a potential departure is hitting fever pitch.

The Celtics’ situation always felt like the most reasonable for Irving. He can be The Guy on a potential championship team with a long window. The Celtics can offer him a max contract (just not until next summer), with stars and young talent around him. He will be the player relied upon for buckets at the end of the game, and his leadership against the Golden State Warriors will be a valuable asset.

None of that is guaranteed to make him stay — things could go wrong in a year, and those things could change Irving’s calculus. That’s just a reality of the NBA.

But the idea that Irving’s desire to leave Cleveland meant he would want to leave Boston never made much sense. In Cleveland, he was the clear second fiddle on a team with little chance at upending the Golden State Warriors. In Boston, he’s the lead star on a team with the type of starting five necessary to contend.

In all likelihood, these quotes don’t change much in the Celtics’ calculation. They have been confident in their ability to convince Irving to stay ever since they offered up a lottery pick and two starters from an Eastern Conference finalist to acquire him.

It just makes the most sense for Irving to remain in Boston. A potential super team is already in place around him (no need for the Celtics to cross their fingers in free agency or surrender assets for better talent), and he has a chance to lead them into June.

Irving himself put it most succinctly: Who wouldn’t want to be a part of that?