Winners and losers from the Kyrie Irving trade to the Celtics

BOSTON, MA - MAY 17: Isaiah Thomas #4 of the Boston Celtics handles the ball against Kyrie Irving #2 of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first half during Game One of the 2017 NBA Eastern Conference Finals at TD Garden on May 17, 2017 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

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CLEVELAND, OH – DECEMBER 29: Isaiah Thomas /

3. Loser: Boston Celtics’ continuity

The Boston Celtics will only be returning four players from the roster last year. Care to name them for me? Yep, it’s Al Horford, Marcus Smart, Terry Rozier and Jaylen Brown.

They’re adding numerous talented players from Kyrie Irving to Gordon Hayward to Marcus Morris. But here’s the issue: all these players have to integrated with the Celtics’ system and find their flow.

It takes time for teams that are thrown together, so it probably won’t go as swiftly as many in Boston hope. I think their continuity on the defensive end takes a hit and I’m sure it’ll take some time for Irving and Hayward to mesh together.

It’s more of a big picture thing than just from this trade, but it seems like the Celtics’ continuity took a large hit after this trade went through.

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