Boston Celtics confident Kyrie Irving's 'best years ahead of him'

Celtics acquire Irving in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic and rights to Brooklyn Nets' 2018 first-round pick.

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving, left, gets his new address after moving to Boston. Ron Schwane / AP Photo

The Boston Celtics signed Kyrie Irving from the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday in a blockbuster trade that saw Isaiah Thomas head in the opposition direction, the Celtics confirmed.

The Celtics said they had acquired Irving in exchange for Thomas, forward Jae Crowder, centre Ante Zizic and the rights to the Brooklyn Nets' 2018 first-round pick.

"Kyrie is one of the best scorers in the NBA. He has proven that on the biggest stage, the NBA Finals, the last three years," Celtics President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge said.

"He's been an NBA champion, an Olympic gold medallist, and a four-time All-Star. For all he's accomplished, we think his best years are ahead of him."

Celtics co-owner Wyc Grousbeck meanwhile paid tribute to the contribution of the departing Thomas and Crowder, key performers for Boston last season as they finished first in the Eastern Conference.

"Isaiah and Jae have been a huge part of our success," he said. "Isaiah's play-off performance under very difficult circumstances will live on in history, and we wish them all the best."

Jake Badger: Kyrie Irving's Cavs career

2011 - Selected number 1 in the NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers, after playing 1 year in college with Duke. Julio Cortez / AP Photo

2012 - Receives the Rookie of the Year award, averaging 18.5 points per game. Mark Duncan / AP Photo

2013 - Awarded his first NBA All Star team selection. Eric Gay / AP Photo

2015 - LeBron James and Kevin Love join the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs make the NBA Finals, Kyrie is forced out of game 1 with an injury and misses the rest of the finals – the Cavs go on to lose. Eric Risberg / AP Photo

2016 - Wins the NBA Championship, defeating the Golden State Warriors. Kyrie hits a crucial last minute three-point shot in game 7 of the finals to help the Cavs win their first Championship in franchise history. Jose Carlos Fajardo / AP Photo

2017 - Reaches the NBA Finals for the third successive year, loses to a Kevin Durant inspired Golden State Warriors super team. Tony Dejak / AP Photo

2017 - Kyrie makes a trade request, Cavs trade him to the Boston Celtics for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and the Brooklyn Nets 2018 first round pick. Ron Schwane / AP Photo

Irving's request for a move away from Cleveland and LeBron James stunned the NBA when it was confirmed in July.

The Cavaliers have made it to the NBA Finals in each of the last three seasons, beating Golden State once and losing on two other occasions.

The Celtics meanwhile topped the Eastern Conference last season but were beaten by Cleveland in five games in the play-offs.

Playmaker Thomas missed the last three games of the series after suffering a hip injury and is reportedly struggling to be fit for the start of the new season in October.

Irving, 25, who averaged 25.2 points on 47.3 per cent shooting and 5.8 assists last season, has three years and US$60 million (Dh220.3m) remaining on his contract.

Thomas, third in the NBA last season with an average of 28.9 points, will be a free agent after the 2017/18 campaign.