INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- Intense competition can bring people together or tear people apart, but in the case of the Cleveland Cavaliers, it definitely did the prior.
There was a time when Kyrie Irving and Matthew Dellavedova were not the best of friends, but through healthy competition at practice and production in games, the Cavaliers' starting point guard, Irving, has gained quite the appreciation for Dellavedova, who made the team as an undrafted free agent prior to the 2013-2014 season.
"It's been amazing," Irving said. "That's why him and me are so close and we have that type of relationship. When he first came, it was almost a fist fight every day in practice, every, single day. It wasn't that he was trying to be dirty or intentional or anything like that. It's just the way he is, his nature.
"It's that Australian blood that he is has. It's deep rooted. They are non-stop. They are going to keep coming at you with whatever they have. It's truly appreciated that you have a competitor like that. Going out and playing with him, you know exactly what you're going to get. I love him."
Irving was not the only one who wanted to get into a fist fight with Dellavedova in the recent past.
Early in the fourth quarter of Game 5 against the Chicago Bulls, Dellavedova was going up for an defensive rebound against Bulls forward Taj Gibson when the two players got tangled up and fell to the ground. Gibson got up first and kicked Dellavedova in the backside, which resulted in all 10 players having to be separated, as well as Gibson's ejection from the game for the flagrant-two foul.
Dellavedova was retroactively assessed a technical foul the next day.
In Game 2 against the Hawks, Dellavedova dove after a loose ball and collided with the right leg of Atlanta sharpshooter Kyle Korver. Korver suffered a high ankle sprain that ended his postseason run prematurely.
Then, with 34.3 seconds left in the first half of Game 3, Dellavedova and Hawks forward Al Horford got tangled up chasing down a rebound near the sideline. As the players went to the floor, Dellavedova took an elbow drop from Horford. Dellavedova quickly got up from the incident and exchanged words with Horford.
After a lengthy review at the scorer's table, the referees assessed a technical foul to Dellavedova and ejected Horford for a flagrant-two foul. Prior to the ejection, Horford led Atlanta with 14 points.
Irving said he "absolutely" could understand why opponents have gotten frustrated with Dellavedova during the postseason, but after competing against him every day for the past two years, he appreciates the hustle and effort the second-year guard gives to the Cavaliers.
"What they said goes out the window," Irving said. "I played against him every, single day and not once has he been over the top. The first time, he's going to test you. You have to have tough skin. I'm not saying Taj Gibson or Al Horford aren't tough or anything like that, but he's just trying to compete.
"We went through a lot together last year. Every day in practice was intense with Coach (Mike) Brown. Him playing for the World Cup as well, we both came in in unbelievable shape. Every day in practice, we pushed each other. Now, he's our backup PG. He does an unbelievable job competing and staying ready at all times."
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