Kyrie Irving is a member of the Boston Celtics. It took eight days from initial agreement to finalization, but it happened. The blockbuster trade shakes up the rosters of the top contenders in the Eastern Conference, and sees the Celtics inch ever closer to LeBron James’ Cavs — although Vegas still isn’t ready to project them as favorites over Cleveland.
There are obvious ramifications for both the Cavs and Celtics, but the effects of this trade will be felt elsewhere as well. In the East, the targets remain the same, but how a team like Washington, with a budding rivalry with the Celtics, matches up with the new look Boston squad remains to be seen. Outside of the Cavs and Celtics’ opponents, the Irving trade had an effect on the video game basketball world as well.
Irving is the cover athlete for NBA 2K18 which means all of their covers and promotional assets had him in his Cavaliers’ gear. Now, they must pivot to a new cover with Irving in a Celtics uniform, with the release of the game set for two weeks from now. Luckily, the eight days of posturing gave them plenty of time to figure it out, and on Thursday, they unveiled the new cover as it looks on Nintendo Switch.
https://twitter.com/NBA2K/status/903311769225101314
It’s some quality photoshop work, but it’s going to take some time to get used to seeing Irving in Celtics green. The Cavs’ chief rival in the East last year and really going back through the first James’ stint in Cleveland (before Irving) has been Boston. So to see someone so associated with the Cavs in a Celtics jersey is a bit strange.
While we won’t see that on the actual basketball court for more than a month, we can let the virtual Celtics help in our adjustment to the new look.
