CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Nearly two months after Kyrie Irving left Oracle Arena on crutches, his season coming to a dejecting end because of a fractured left kneecap, Irving was back on a basketball court.
"Great," Irving said when asked how he is feeling following surgery in early June. "Taking it one day at a time. It's a process getting back to where I want to be. But I'm doing what I can here with the kids and that's all that matters. I started walking about a week ago so whether I was on crutches or not I was still going to be here for the kids."
There was nothing rigorous about this return to the hardwood. Irving spoke Saturday afternoon from Mentor High School, the site of this year's Kyrie Irving Basketball ProCamp where he and a selection of the area's top high school and college basketball coaches were leading a camp of 550 kids in grades 1-12. Irving was walking from station to station to monitor the campers without any issues. He even picked up a basketball a few different times and showed off his dazzling handles while leading the dribbling drill.
Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving takes kids through drills during the Kyrie Irving Basketball ProCamp at Mentor High School.
Injured during Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Irving had surgery at the Cleveland Clinic less than 24 hours after an MRI revealed the fracture, which had bothered him throughout the postseason.
"You don't want any injuries," he said. "It sucks when you're actually injured but it's a test of your will and patience and just continuing to stay involved in the game the best you can. That's what I tried to do. Be there for my teammates as much as possible, see them as much as possible, see our coaching staff as much as possible and stay in tune with everything that's going on."
Following successful surgery, the Cavs put a three to fourth month timetable for his recovery, which should put him on schedule to return for Training Camp at the end of September. Irving, however, isn't thinking that far ahead.
"I'm honestly not putting a date on anything," he said. "People are going to put a date regardless. I'm just continuing to be on the journey I've been on and that's continuing to get better every single day and rehabbing my leg."
Irving has spent much of his summer in Miami, rehabbing at Pinecrest Physical Therapy, a facility less than five miles from agent Jeff Wechsler's office. While there are still more steps Irving needs to take, general manager David Griffin told reporters in Las Vegas about two weeks ago that Irving is progressing well, something that was made clear on Saturday afternoon.
"I only had the cast on for two weeks," Irving said. "Then I was in a brace. Once I got clearance from our doctors that I could actually start working out and put pressure on my leg I relish that."
Unfortunately for Irving, rehab has become a customary practice. During the Cavs' postseason run, he left the all-important closeout game in the Eastern Conference semifinals early, playing just 12 minutes because of the left knee injury, which was originally diagnosed at tendinitis. He attempted to gut through, using ice as his primary form of recovery, but missed two games of the Eastern Conference finals against Atlanta and the final five games of the Finals' loss against Golden State, a result Irving believes would have been different had he not been forced to watch from afar.
"Absolutely," he responded pointedly when asked if there was a part of him that believes the fully healthy Cavs would've beaten Golden State.
"Being a confident basketball player and knowing what we had with our team, it was obviously tough, but I know all of us and the guys that are coming back, we haven't forgotten what happened. A great Warriors team won the Finals and all credit goes to them but our ultimate goal is still a championship, bring it to Cleveland."
While Irving has been recuperating in Miami, Griffin and the Cavs have been busy reloading for another title quest. Along with re-signing Iman Shumpert, LeBron James, Kevin Love and James Jones, they've added veterans Mo Williams and Richard Jefferson in free agency.
"It's awesome," Irving said. "The veterans that we are getting are winners and they obviously wanted to be a part of what we have going here. A lot of it has to do with the team that we have and the team that we had last year and the guys that are coming back.
"I think it will be even better. We all know each other and what to expect from each other. It was our first year and I think we did pretty well regardless of all the limitations we had. I can still take off my hat for the effort we gave throughout the whole season last year."
There's still more work to do. Griffin continues his search for a trade partner involving Brendan Haywood's unique, non-guaranteed contract. There are also decisions that still need to be made when it comes to unrestricted free agent J.R. Smith along with restricted free agents Matthew Dellavedova and Tristan Thompson.
"This is the other side of the business," Irving said after being asked whether he has spoken to any of the three players. "As a respect for all my teammates and what we've done I will let them handle it and they're going to make the best decisions for their families just like I would do. I don't try to get too involved. That's between the organization and the players and that's where I leave it. I don't get involved at all until they actually sign back. If we're grateful to get them back then great, but if not, they are doing what is best for them and you have to respect it as a professional basketball player."
Until then, Irving's focus will be on his camp, which wraps Sunday, and his ongoing recovery.
There's plenty of work ahead. But his motivation is simple: Get back to the level he displayed prior to being dogged by injuries throughout the postseason. Get back to the play that earned him Third Team All-NBA honors for the first time after averaging 21.7 points (9th in the NBA) in a career-high 75 regular season games.
"Nothing hard about it," Irving said of his rehab. "Just knowing why I get up every single morning. Just my passion for the game and what we have to get ready for going into next season."