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Ainge: Kyrie Irving’s Game 7 Absence ‘Blown Out of Proportion’, Was in ‘Constant Contact’ With Team & Players

Kyrie Irving’s Game 7 absence caused a bit of a stir. Danny Ainge doesn’t think it was a big deal.

Point guard Kyrie Irving of the Boston Celtics (Photo by Omar Rawlings)

Kyrie Irving (Photo by Omar Rawlings)

(Photo by Omar Rawlings)

Danny Ainge addressed a fresh controversy involving Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving during his weekly call with Toucher & Rich on Thursday. Irving was absent from the C's Game 7 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers due to a minor surgery to repair a deviated septum. This raised eyebrows among some who believed he could have helped the team just with his presence, particularly with younger players like Terry Rozier.

Ainge doesn't believe Irving being on the bench would've made that big of a difference, and that the whole issue has been exaggerated in the wake of the loss.

"I don’t think it's a big deal at all, personally," Ainge told T&R. "I think that's a little bit blown out of proportion. But [Irving] was with Terry and communicating with Terry all along. Having him sit on the bench to calm Terry's nerves, I don't know. ... I'm just not sure how much of a benefit [that would've been].

"It's a fair criticism, but I think it's probably blown out of proportion."

Point guard Kyrie Irving of the Boston Celtics (Photo by Omar Rawlings)(Photo by Omar Rawlings)

Kyrie Irving (Photo by Omar Rawlings)

Ainge confirmed that Irving was in New Jersey with his father and daughter during Game 7, and that the All-Star point guard was in "constant contact" with him, coaches, and teammates while he was away from the team. Ainge cited the "unpredictable" NBA playoff schedule as a reason the C's couldn't simply push Irving's surgery back after it had already been planned when the Game 7 time came out.

Ainge also discussed Marcus Smart's comments about his contract, the latest on Gordon Hayward, and what he knows about burner Twitter accounts ... Listen above for the full interview!

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Matt, a North Andover, Massachusetts native, has been with The Sports Hub since 2010. Growing up the son of Boston University All-American and Melrose High School hall-of-fame hockey player Steve Dolloff, sports was always a part of his life. After attending Northeastern University, Matt focused his love of sports on writing, extensively writing about all four major Boston teams. He also is a co-host of the Sports Hub Underground podcast and is a regular on-air contributor on the Sports Hub. Matt writes about all New England sports from Patriots football to Boston Celtics and Boston Bruins.