Isaiah Thomas and Danny Ainge hugged it out Wednesday before the Boston Celtics hosted the Cleveland Cavaliers at TD Garden. Although Thomas was hurt when the Celtics traded him to the Cavaliers in the offseason deal that brought Kyrie Irving to Boston, it’s now all water under the bridge.
This is a stark contrast from Thomas saying just a few months ago he’d never again speak to Ainge, the man responsible for shipping him to Cleveland. In fact, Ainge explained Thursday on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s “Toucher & Rich” that he texted Thomas multiple times since the trade and completely understands why the All-Star point guard never responded.
“I don’t think (it’s strange), and I never really played much into it, quite honestly,” the Celtics president of basketball operations said. “What happened was is actually I texted him in August, after everything was all done and the trade went through and was finalized and so forth. I sent him a text basically just sharing my appreciation for him, knowing that I would not get a response.
“And then in November, I sent him a text thanking him for his help with Jaylen (Brown),” Ainge added. “When Jaylen lost his friend, Isaiah had reached out to Jaylen and had given him some help, and just talked with him as a friend and someone who’s been through this before — lost a loved one — and I just wrote a note of appreciation to Isaiah. And I didn’t expect any response then, either.
“The other night after his first game (with Cleveland), I congratulated him and said he looked great and said, ‘Well, what’s he been holding back, it looked like he could have played a month ago he looked so good.’ So anyway, that’s all. And Isaiah and I had a good hug in the hallway (Wednesday night) and we saw each other after the game and smiled and wished happy New Year and good luck going forward.”
Thomas, of course, didn’t play Wednesday night in Boston despite making his season debut for the Cavaliers on Tuesday night in Cleveland against the Portland Trail Blazers. He missed Cleveland’s first 36 games with a hip injury that cut short his 2017 playoff run with Boston, and the Cavs therefore are being careful with the 28-year-old, knowing they’ll need him later in the year.
It still was an emotional night at TD Garden, though, even with the Celtics postponing their I.T. video tribute until the next time he comes to Boston. Thomas gave all he had in his two-plus seasons with the franchise, earning a great deal of respect along the way.
“Isaiah’s a great kid and, as we know, he’s a very, very passionate person. And I might add, this was a very, very difficult trade for a lot of people,” Ainge said. “Heck, my grandkids still wear Isaiah Thomas jerseys around.
“It’s a unique trade, it’s a unique situation that happened. Isaiah gave his heart and soul to the Celtics, and yeah, it has dragged on a long time and a lot of it is because of his injury and he hasn’t even been on the court. I think now that he’s on the court, this will probably all die fast.”
We’ll see how this relationship evolves, especially if the Celtics and Cavs end up meeting in the playoffs with Cleveland seeking its fourth straight trip to the NBA Finals.
