Kyrie Irving returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers against the New Orleans Hornets on Sunday night after missing eight games with a strained left shoulder.

There was speculation Irving would miss the rest of the season after injuring the shoulder March 10 against the Toronto Raptors.

"It wasn't so much what I noticed but it was the way he was moving, the way he said he felt," coach Byron Scott said. "He has to trust me. If I don't think he looks right, if I don't think he's moving well, then I'll take him out."