Boston Celtics: The 5 players walking through that door in 2018

Kyrie Irving out to prove his commitment to Boston

What Boston Celtics found out in 2017-18 is that Kyrie Irving is every bit the superstar he was chalked up to be.

After forcing a trade from LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, Irving led the Celtics in scoring with 24.4 points and dazzled fans and opposing players with his amazing ball-handling skills.

There was a point in the season, following the team’s long early-season winning streak that Irving was in considerable running for league MVP. Injuries, however, slowed Irving and eventually ended his season prior to the playoffs.

Led by the emergence of Jayson Tatum and Terry Rozier, the Boston Celtics still reached the Eastern Conference Finals, but one has to wonder just how far the team would’ve went had Kyrie Irving not been sidelined with knee issues.

The fact that the team still got as far as they did lead to questions on whether the team even needs Irving.  With his scoring ability, the answer to that is obvious, but the fact that he is entering the final year of his contract has led to rumors about his desires to play in New York.

With his long-term commitment to the team in question, Kyrie Irving will play all season long with those questions and rumors lurking.  How he and his teammates handle that will determine how far they go.

As of right now, Irving knows the type of future the Boston Celtics have and at least says he wants to be apart of it.

"“My job is to really cement myself as the leader of the Boston Celtics, along with our other great players, and really relish in that opportunity,” Irving said in an interview with Jackie MacMullan.  “Obviously, it’s everyone else’s job to look forward to my future before I can.  I just really thought it was important to make sure it’s known that his franchise is really built for the next few years of being at the top tier of teams in the league, and who wouldn’t want to be a part of that?”"

Furthermore, Kyrie Irving admitted he has thoughts of having No.11 hanging in the rafters along with great Boston Celtics like Bill Russell.  That certainly sounds like commitment.