Dallas Mavericks rookie Dennis Smith Jr. and Boston Celtics star Kyrie Irving got into a bit of an altercation after Smith took offense to a sly elbow Irving landed on the rookie. The two had to be separated by teammates and were each assessed technical fouls.
Smith didn’t make a big deal out of the whole incident, though, saying it’s fun when players to try and prove themselves to others.
Kyrie on mixup with Dennis Smith: "People bumping, trying to prove something, that’s always fun. It stays within the game. So you understand that. It’s a competitive streak. And then from that point it becomes who’s going to continue to stay within the game plan."
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) December 7, 2017
Irving went on to reveal that he’s been following Smith and watching him on YouTube ever since he was in high school.
More Kyrie on Smith: "I’m just an avid YouTube watcher, an avid studier of people’s games. So I’ve been watching him since he was in high school when he was doing windmills on his AAU team in North Carolina…. And to play against him now as a 25-year-old … is awesome. “
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) December 7, 2017
Irving has proven that he’s always up for a challenge. That’s a big reason why he left Cleveland in order to establish himself as the big star in Boston. He's as fiery a competitor as they come and he showed that once again in the scuffle with Smith.
However, it’s also interesting to learn how deep Irving’s willingness to study and learn go. He’s already displayed this season that he had the ability to improve his defense and his playmaking. But he’s also apparently watching a lot of film if he’s breaking down high schoolers on YouTube.
Irving and the Celtics will have a lot more teams coming after them and trying to knock them off their perch, but Irving will be ready to have fun and compete against all comers.