Now, we can finally put the Kyrie Irving saga behind us

The whole Kyrie Irving thing is over in Boston. Done. Finished.

There's no way Irving ever gets his revenge on the Celtics even one time, let alone overcoming the embarrassment of losing to them in the NBA Finals as badly as he did, playing as poorly as he played. And Boston can now not only exhale at the fact that their two homegrown stars, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, have won a championship, but that the C's will always have the final word on their exiled former teammate.

Irving continues to be as insufferable as the summer is hot. But he's no longer a player to be feared in any way, or even respected. As a competitor, the book is closed on this saga. The hate bucket is empty.

Forgiveness? Maybe not. But Irving should never again be of any real concern to Celtics fans. So, it's time to put the whole tale to rest. The Celtics won. It's over. Time to enjoy the spoils of victory, and the vanquishing of an all-time enemy.

Irving still found a way to deliver some hateable remarks in his postgame press conference, after the Celtics defeated his Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, eliminating him and hoisting the Larry O'Brien Trophy in his presence, as green & white confetti flooded the TD Garden court. Did Irving sneaky-take credit for Brown and Tatum growing into the champions they've become?

"So, it's admirable, you know, and to see - did JB win Finals MVP? Yeah, that was big-time to see that trophy in his hands," Irving said. "I think him and [Tatum] should have split it, but those two guys in particular have, you know, almost been like students and as well now becoming teachers in their own right.

"So to see them accomplish - see them accomplish that, I'm really proud and also extremely motivated to get back to this position in the next few years with my guys and be able to win this thing."

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The students have become the teachers? Did Irving really just imply that he taught those two how to play?

Irving hasn't worn a Celtics uniform since 2019. He skipped out on attending the end of their playoff run while he was injured. He maneuvered his way to Brooklyn along with Kevin Durant, just to get away from them. If anything, Irving abandoned his young star teammates. He did the opposite of help them grow.

Those actions in 2019 continue to be the primary reasons why Irving grew into such a villain in Boston sports lore. He will forever be written as such. But now? He's small potatoes. He's 32 years old and coming off a Finals in which he averaged a mere 14.3 points on 34% shooting in Boston, where the fans booed him mercilessly every time he touched the ball and approach double-digit "Kyrie sucks!" chants.

Boston, collectively, has ended this guy. The team, and the fans, have put out this fire. As much as Irving's bloviating could make the boos rage on whenever he comes back to TD Garden, but there's no more undercurrent of worry about what he might do on the court.

We already know what he'll do. He'll wilt. And the Celtics will win.

And thus concludes a strange, compelling, at times maddening, but ultimately triumphant, chapter of Celtics history.

Matt Dolloff is a writer and digital content producer for 98.5 The Sports Hub. Read all of his articles here.

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