Kyrie Irving Not Dwelling On Celtics Past In NBA Finals Matchup

The Mavericks clinched their spot in the NBA Finals, which means fans will witness a matchup between Kyrie Irving against the Boston Celtics on a grand stage.

Dallas completed its gentlemen's sweep over the Minnesota Timberwolves with a dominant Game 5 win at Target Center.

Irving played two seasons with Boston, but it was not a graceful ending between the sides. And fans still have animosity toward the All-NBA star for warranted or unwarranted reasons. The 32-year-old reciprocated that animosity, but after Thursday's Game 5 win, he was ready to leave all that behind.

"I'm at a place in my life where I don't even consider those past moments," Irving told Scott Van Pelt on ESPN's "SportsCenter" on Thursday. "I was able to unpack them in a healthy way and move forward as a person. I had a rough time there when I was in Boston. Again, just dealing with death in my family and dealing with a lot of off-court stuff I wasn't ready to handle.

"Now that I'm in a great place to vocalize how I'm feeling, I'm ready to go back into Boston, have fun with my teammates. I know we're going to be locked in. And we're going up against a great Boston team that has earned their way into the NBA Finals. I just see them as a formidable opponent, an honest opponent. We're gonna see the best team that wins."

Celtics fans certainly will make their voices heard about Irving as Boston and Dallas prepare for Game 1 of the NBA Finals at TD Garden next Thursday.