Kyrie Irving on LeBron James: 'We should congratulate and celebrate him as much as possible'

Things got just a little bit interesting after the Cavs won the 2016 NBA Finals courtesy of a Kyrie Irving laser-like 3-pointer, a poster worthy LeBron James block and some pesky defense from Kevin Love.

You know, the roster fell apart as Irving forced his way out of Cleveland via trade, much to James’ dismay and James, as was his right, fled for the sunny climes of Los Angeles to play for the storied Lakers.

While James won a championship in the NBA’s pandemic bubble year in 2020, to say it’s been a slog since would be an understatement. The Lakers missed the playoffs last year. This season they’re struggling to find a groove and currently sit at 23-28 as center Anthony Davis has missed significant time this season (AGAIN).

LeBron James pursues NBA scoring record:Counting down to LeBron James passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become NBA's scoring king

But hey, Lakers fans can watch James chase immortality by claiming the NBA’s all-time leading scoring record held by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and in a sign that fences have been mended over the years, Irving heaped praise on James after the Brooklyn Nets beat the Lakers 121-104 Monday night. He’s not surprised James is on the verge of making history.

"His ability to prepare himself mentally, spiritually, emotionally, game to game, day to day,” he said in an ESPN report. “I've been quoted on saying it's hard to be LeBron James, or any superstar, or any entertainment, sport, athletic or business industry, because all eyes are on you. But he's handled it extremely well."

Irving certainly understands what James’ presence has done for the NBA, even if their relationship hasn't always gone smoothly.

"We gave the keys to the whole entire business to an 18-year-old kid and now he's 38 years old and he's still dominating," Irving said of James. "I don't think we should be surprised. I think we should congratulate and celebrate him as much as possible. Continue to enjoy the shows that he put on because it's not going to be for too much longer."

James is averaging 30.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 7.1 assists in his 20^th season and will break Abdul-Jabbar’s record soon, but it will have to wait for him to recover from a sore left foot that kept him from Monday’s game. Akron’s own is 117 points away from breaking the record.

Irving said the NBA should celebrate the achievement. Wouldn’t it have been something if they could have done so while still teammates and wearing Cavs jerseys? Just a thought.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving shares admiration for LeBron James