Celtics' Ainge wasn’t totally sure Irving trade would go through

Boston Celtics general manager Danny Ainge admits that when the Kyrie Irving trade was held up for about a week, there were moments he thought the deal wouldn’t go through, according to ESPN’s Chris Forsberg.

The Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers initially agreed to a deal that sent Irving to Boston for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic and the Brooklyn Nets’ 2018 first-round pick. Thomas’ hip injury, however, caused a delay and there was a sense in Boston that the deal might not transpire.

"It’s like you’re a real estate agent and someone has agreed to buy your house, but until the papers are signed and the bank is on board, the sale doesn’t go through," Ainge said. "And that’s sort of how it is after you make any deal in our league. It’s never done until it’s done."

Added Celtics coach Brad Stevens: "First of all, I didn't think [the trade] was happening, and then, in about a 20-hour period, it went from, 'I didn't think it was happening' to 'Holy smokes, this might happen.' "

The Celtics ultimately added a second-round pick to the deal to complete it.

Irving and Zizic are still in Boston and Cleveland, respectively. Crowder was traded by the Cavs at the 2018 trade deadline to the Utah Jazz, while Thomas was sent to the Los Angeles Lakers. Thomas signed a one-year free-agent deal with the Denver Nuggets this summer.

Irving was on the set of his movie, "Uncle Drew," when he learned he was going to be a member of the Celtics, eight days after the original deal was first reported.

"I left out of the club that we were shooting at and I had to decompress for a quick second and it was just an energy shift," Irving said.

Irving’s first year with the Celtics was cut short after the superstar guard underwent season-ending knee surgery in April. Before going down, Irving was averaging 24.4 points and 5.1 assists in 60 games while shooting 49.1 percent from the field and 40.8 percent from beyond the arc.

Irving is 100 percent now and will be ready for the start of training camp. The All-Star will return to Boston next week and is expected to join his teammates in informal workouts.