Kyrie Irving had separate conversations in recent days with Danny Ainge and Brad Stevens, which he says have eased his tensions.

Irving has had a tumultuous month with Anthony Davis trade rumors, his own links to the New York Knicks, and the continued struggles of the Boston Celtics.

“That long plane ride helped us out, I’ll just say that,” Irving said of the past two days. “We needed it. We want to get to a point we’re just going to get tired of fighting each other, fighting the outside world when it doesn’t even matter. This is our sanctuary and we have to do everything to protect it. We can’t let anybody infiltrate it.

“The business part of it is what makes (the game) terrible for me, honestly dealing with all this (expletive). The basketball part, I have to keep that fun, that’s where I’m great. That’s where I love to play and be around my teammates. That’s what makes me happy.

“It wasn’t a change of perspective. It was just letting the guard down completely. Just not thinking I’m at odds with everybody. It’s not a competition in this locker room. Talking with Brad was very helpful. Talking with Danny was very helpful. That made it very easy to just go out and just have fun playing basketball.”