Kyrie: Playing against Luka was 'awkward as shit'

Kyrie Irving acknowledged it was strange facing former Dallas Mavericks teammate Luka Doncic for the first time since he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers earlier in February.

"Awkward as shit," Irving told reporters following the Mavs' 107-99 loss to the Lakers on Tuesday night, via Joey Mistretta of ClutchPoints. "It was awkward, but now I can talk about the emotions."

Despite the awkwardness, Irving enjoyed playing against Doncic and seeing Lakers fans cheer him on.

"At the same time, it was fun," Irving said. "We got a chance to feel like we were in practice all over again, going at each other. That was a good reflection point, and then just seeing the crowd cheer for him and just get him going and see him make some of the tough shots that I've seen him make thousands of times. That's what probably made it even more awkward, but it was fun. It was fun competing."

Doncic finished the game with 19 points, 15 rebounds, and 12 assists, earning his first triple-double as a Laker, while Irving led the Mavs with 35 points.