The Boston Celtics were able to acquire Kyrie Irving without sending back any of their young core players to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland sought the inclusion of Jayson Tatum in the deal, which led to the talks lasting for several weeks before they agreed upon a deal of Irving for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic and Brooklyn's 2018 first round pick.

"The big discussion point with Boston and Cleveland over the past several weeks on a potential deal has always been about Jayson Tatum's involvement," said Shams Charania on NBATV. "The Cavaliers coveted him greatly. I think if Tatum was involved the first day these talks transpired, this deal would have been done weeks ago.

"Boston held firm. (Tatum), Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart: these guys are the future for the Celtics. They've obviously been pairing these younger guys with Al Horford, Gordon Hayward, and now you're bringing in Kyrie Irving. 

"So that was the real sticking point.

"These discussions have been going on ever since Kyrie Irving made this trade demand. The major sticking point was Tatum and Boston was able to get the man they wanted for weeks without giving up Tatum, Jaylen Brown or Marcus Smart.