The hiatus is over! Shooting the Moon is back in a big way. Yes, it’s been awhile, but with football on the horizon and the massive news from last night was like flipping the switch on the bat signal. It’s time to dust off the keyboard and actually get back to writing. That’s not to say I’ve been totally out of the loop, the past few weeks has involved a lot of researching and studying so I’m anxious to get back to writing about the NFL, college football, and fantasy football yet again.

However, there is a massive piece of news that we need to get out of the way first before we can start talking about football. Judging from the “Heat Check” tag on this post, I’m sure there are no surprises here. The wild and never-ending NBA offseason may have dropped its biggest nugget last night in the form of superstar (and NBA 2K18 cover athlete) Kyrie Irving getting traded from Cleveland to Boston. This megadeal was weeks in the making, and yet came out of nowhere at the same time.

When news broke a month ago that Irving had requested to be traded, there was this sense that it was more “if” not “when” it would occur. Even more bizarre than the out-of-the-blue trade demand was the implication that Irving was no longer content to be the Robin to LeBron James’s Batman. Trade rumors were wildly tossed around like a lunchtime food fight, but all the while Irving remained a Cavalier.

First, he was as good as gone. Then, there was a feeling that Cleveland would hold off on making a deal in the hopes that Irving and James could smooth out their working relationship to make one more run at a championship. New Cleveland GM Koby Altman had quite the conundrum on his hands during his first month on the job.

Altman clearly saw that there was a limited shelf life for duo that brought Cleveland its first championship. The problem was how could he trade a 25-year old player, who is arguably one of the best point guards in the game, and give LeBron a reason to stick around after next season. Two superstars, Jimmy Butler and Paul George, were already traded this offseason for what seemed like pennies on the dollar. Altman was not in the position to be left holding an empty bag with this trade.

Enter the Boston Celtics, its general manager Danny Ainge, and the countless assets at their disposal. The league has been waiting with baited breath for when Ainge would finally push those chips to the center of the table to acquire a superstar. Ainge is notorious for being a great trade negotiator (ex. forming the Big Three in 2008, then trading Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett to the Nets in 2013). However, he did not pull the trigger to acquire Butler or George. Ainge was willing to play the long game in order to get the Celtics back to the NBA Finals and was unwilling to flip the two most valuable trade pieces at his disposal to get a star.

That 2017 pick swap with Brooklyn that turned into the number one pick in the draft? It was untouchable for the longest time, until days before the draft in late June when Boston traded down with Philadelphia. It netted Boston the third pick (Jason Tatum) and either the Lakers 2018 first round pick (if it falls at 2-5) or the better of the Kings/Sixers first round picks in 2019 (unprotected).

So what would it take for the Celtics to finally make their move? Well it turns out the Irving trade request opened up a huge opportunity. Last night the NBA world was rocked by the news that the top two teams in the Eastern Conference agreed to a megadeal that sent Irving to Boston in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and the Nets 2018 unprotected first round pick. Now that we’ve all had some time to let that piece of news sink in, we have to try and figure out what this means heading into next season.

As for the NBA championship, Vegas sports books still have the Golden State Warriors as the HEAVY favorites to repeat in 2018. The Cavs and Celtics odds to win the title also remained the same as well. Truthfully, this speaks more to the dominant roster that resides in the Bay Area than anything. In reality, this trade has more far-reaching effects than just next season.

While most NBA insiders believe that LeBron might leave Cleveland, last night’s trade may have pushed more people into agreeing with that opinion. A championship run could be the only thing keeping the King in “The Land” past next summer. However, the path there got much more difficult now that Boston has Irving to lead the new-look Celtics.

I have held a strong opinion that the Eastern Conference would be up for grabs sooner rather than later, and this trade has only strengthened that opinion. Boston is in the driver’s seat long term, while Washington and Milwaukee each have rosters ready to take the next step towards a championship. Toronto kept much of last year’s roster for one more run, but they could be on their last legs with the current iteration of this team. Cleveland is certainly heading towards a rebuild sooner than we could have expected a few months ago. Speaking of rebuilding, the Philadelphia 76ers are finally on their way towards relevance, provided that its young core can finally be healthy all at once.

Over in the Western Conference, we all know that the Warriors will be the team to beat for the foreseeable future. Houston has a one-year experiment with Chris Paul and James Harden, so we will have to see what the future holds for them. San Antonio can never be counted out and are lurking like the army of the dead in Game of Thrones. Minnesota has built an impressive core of players and is poised to take aim at the champs. Oklahoma City has two of the best playmakers in the entire league, but for how long?

If this Irving trade has done anything, it has made the foreseeable future of the NBA a lot murkier past next season. The summers of 2018 and 2019 will now become major turning points for the next five years in the NBA. October can’t come soon enough for the Association.

That’s it for me today. I’ll be back tomorrow with the return of “No Huddle” to start my division previews for the 2017-18 NFL season. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney, subscribe to Shooting the Moon on WordPress, and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook.