Gordon Hayward was just as shocked as most Boston Celtics fans when the trade that sent Isaiah Thomas to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Kyrie Irving was officially declared this offseason. In a blog post he wrote on his own website, Hayward revealed that he barely knew anything about the brewing blockbuster trade that left Twitter in shambles and fans of both teams involved absolutely dumbfounded.

In referring to a breaking news brought by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski about the trade’s development, Hayward revealed that “it started to get real” for him upon reading the insider’s tweet.

As told by Hayward, one of the biggest reasons why he chose to go green was because of Thomas urging him to sign with the Celtics. He even added that the way Thomas sold to him the city of Boston and its qualities was a huge factor for his decision.

“My first reaction was to text I.T., and wish him the best. That was a really strange moment because I’d really been looking forward to playing with him. He didn’t just help recruit me to Boston—he was a big piece of that recruitment. He had talked a lot about city and how it was different to be a Celtic. He talked about the intensity of playing in the Eastern Conference Finals, playing at the Garden in the playoffs, and how much fun it was, and how much fun he had playing in Boston.”

Understanding that the NBA is above all, a business, Hayward bared that he accepted the trade calmly.

“But that is just how the business works. I have spent enough years in the NBA to realize that things can change like that, in an instant.”

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With Kyrie Irving taking over the role formerly of Thomas, Gordon Hayward seems ready to work with Irving, whom he welcomed to the Celtics via a text.

So that door closed, and then another one opened, and Kyrie Irving was a member of the Celtics. I texted Kyrie too, and said, “Welcome to Boston. Let’s do this thing.”

There is only so much drama that the offseason could provide but this trade by the Celtics is proving to be a gift that keeps on giving in terms of interesting takes and stories from everyone involved.