The Boston Celtics are using Kyrie Irving during fourth quarters a little differently than what he was used to with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Irving conspicuously sat the first seven minutes of the fourth against the Charlotte Hornets before coming back in to lead the Celtics to a 102-91 win.

After the game, Irving discussed exactly how his past situation in Cleveland was different and how he’s handling his current situation with the Celtics.

Per Jay King of The Republican:

“It's definitely a learning experience for me because that's a time where I was afforded when I was in Cleveland to be able to kind of tell (Tyronn) Lue and tell the other coaches, ‘I'm ready to go in.' And that was kind of on my end. And coming into the environment I'm in with (Celtics head coach) Brad (Stevens), and understanding his intellect of the game, and being able to trust what we have going on, and what's going on throughout the game — not that I didn't trust what was going on before, but for me it's just been where I have to be patient, and my impact on the game is felt a little bit different. So there are some times where I want to push the pedal to the metal and go back out there and just — but whatever's needed, I'm willing to do for the team.”

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It’s not the first time Kyrie Irving has brought up his new coach Brad Stevens’ intellect. He previously commented that he was craving an intellectual mind like Stevens in his career, and that comment inevitably led to comparisons with his old Cavs coach.

While the Celtics star goes out of his way to say that he trusted what was going on with the Cavs, it’s clear to see that he has a deeper trust in Stevens that he’s willing to remain patient and accepting of Stevens' decisions despite being used in a much different way than what he’s been accustomed to.

It’s definitely a good sign for the Celtics going forward that Irving has seemingly bought in fully to the program in Boston and looks committed to the team-first mentality based on how he's handling the whole fourth quarter situation.