Before the NBA Finals began, people already realized that it would be all about Kyrie Irving, who plays for Dallas, facing his former team. That was immediately followed by the thought of Boston’s Kristaps Porzingis playing against his old squad, too.
There were plenty of other awkward moments featuring players competing against a former teammate, too.
Washington Wizards
Daniel Gafford and Porzingis were teammates when they played for the Washington Wizards. Now, both of them can say that they have been to the NBA Finals. Gafford was a marvel playing for the Mavericks this season while Porzingis just earned his first ring when the Celtics won it all.
Chicago Bulls
Gafford had to play against another ex-teammate in Luke Kornet. The duo’s history can be traced back to their playing days in Chicago. They played for the Bulls back when Gafford was still a rookie. However, logging less than 16 minutes per game, they never really showed their worth and were traded away for more assets.
Luke Kornet brought the dab back for the parade pic.twitter.com/qOKOtgb2S3
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) June 21, 2024
Atlanta Hawks
Al Horford, a key player for the Atlanta Hawks for several seasons, had Tim Hardaway Jr. as his teammate for a year. Hardaway played for the New York Knicks and the Atlanta Hawks before making his way to Dallas while Horford bounced around for a few teams before ending up in Boston.
The Assistant and the Executive
Dallas has Michael Finley as the person in charge of their basketball operations. Meanwhile, Boston has Sam Cassell as an assistant coach. Only a few will remember Finley and Cassell being teammates during the mid-1990s. They both played for the same two teams in the same season when they started out as members of the Phoenix Suns and then were traded to the Mavericks.
NBA Trademates
When coach Jason Kidd was on the court and looked over to Boston’s side, fans expected him to recognize Cassell. After all, both players were traded for each other back in the day. That practically makes them “trade” teammates in a deal that involved several other players. At that time, Kidd was moved from Dallas to Phoenix in exchange for Cassell.
i was BEGGING for a timeout earlier to kill the celtics momentum, nothing
mavs go on a 20-2 run, have all the momentum, and he calls one
jason kidd, i have questions
— claire de lune (@ClaireMPLS) June 13, 2024
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