Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Isaiah Thomas says he never expects to speak with Boston Celtics general manager Danny Ainge again.
“Boston is going to be all love,” Thomas told Sports Illustrated. “I might not ever talk to Danny again. That might not happen. I’ll talk to everybody else. But what he did, knowing everything I went through, you don’t do that, bro. That’s not right.”
Ainge shocked the NBA in August by trading Thomas in a package that sent fellow point guard Kyrie Irving to Boston. Cleveland also acquired Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, the Brooklyn Nets’ 2018 first-round pick, and the Miami Heat’s 2020 second-round pick in the trade.
The deal came just months after Thomas played through injury and the death of his sister during the playoffs to help the Celtics reach the Eastern Conference Finals. The five-foot-nine Thomas became a star and fan favourite in Boston during his three seasons with the club.
“I’m not saying eff you,” Thomas said. “But every team in this situation comes out a year or two later and says, ‘We made a mistake.’ That’s what they’ll say, too.”
“None of it made any sense,” he added. “It still doesn’t make any sense. I’m still asking, ‘What the hell happened?’ It’s a trade you make in NBA2K. It’s not a trade you make in real life.”
The 28-year-old, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer, is currently sidelined with a torn labrum in his right hip and may not return until January.
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