Everyone is downplaying the Celtics-Cavaliers rivalry, except for J.R. Smith

As luck would have it, the Cleveland Cavaliers will host the Boston Celtics in the first game of the NBA season on Tuesday night, pitting LeBron James against Kyrie Irving after a feud between the former teammates ended in divorce by way of a trade that shook the Eastern Conference this past summer.

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On the eve of the season opener, just about all parties involved with the two Eastern Conference finalists are downplaying this Cavs-Celtics re(venge)match. Except, of course, Earl Joseph Smith III.

At some point between the draft and the end of the NBA’s early July free agency moratorium, Irving requested a trade from the team that drafted him first overall in 2011, reportedly due to a desire to play outside of LeBron’s shadow. Reports surfaced suggesting James wanted Kyrie gone and was even “tempted to beat” Kyrie’s “a**” over resulting perception that the four-time MVP was a bad teammate.

James and Irving traded what appeared to be trolling jabs at each other on social media. Kyrie also reportedly cut off all communication with the Cavs while also laughing in a cameo on an Instagram video of Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry mimicking LeBron’s odd workout dance routine.

It was all very strange, and became stranger still with the shocking late-August news that the Cavs agreed to send Irving to Boston in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, Brooklyn’s unprotected 2018 first-round pick. After a week of haggling over Thomas’ injury status that resulted in the Celtics sweetening the pot with a second-round pick, the deal was finally finalized on Aug. 30.

Publicly, LeBron pledged “nothing but respect,” and Irving said a “special thank you to Cleveland.” On media day, Irving sidestepped questions about their relationship, and LeBron repeatedly referred to Irving as “the kid” and added, “I tried to give him everything, give him as much of my DNA as I could.”

Then came Kyrie’s appearance on ESPN’s “First Take” in which he disregarded LeBron’s personal feelings and expressed excitement about “actually playing point guard” for a coach that is willing to teach him. That was followed by Irving saying of Boston, “I’m really playing in a real, live sports city.”

And so the feud was back on. Or so it would seem.

But both sides continued to publicly downplay the importance of Irving’s return to Cleveland:

The Cavaliers will reportedly present a video tribute to Irving on opening night, and it’s still not clear whether James will even play after suffering an ankle injury that kept him out of the final three games of the preseason. Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue has repeatedly said LeBron’s status remains uncertain.

Thomas, who recently said he “might not ever talk to Danny [Ainge] again,” is unavailable on Tuesday, and Crowder wouldn’t even bite on a question about guarding Gordon Hayward — the All-Star who replaced him in Boston’s starting lineup and whose applause from Celtics fans he publicly resented.

“I’m over it. I’ve moved on,” Crowder told reporters on Sunday, via ESPN.com’s Dave McMenamin. “I’m with a great group of guys right here who have worked very, very hard each day we’ve been at practice. It’s been fun to be around. Of course, at the time I was shocked, but now that I’ve moved on, I’m not.”

So, maybe we’re making too big a deal out of this reunion? That’s where J.R. Smith comes in.

Not only did Smith suggest LeBron might have some added incentive to play opposite Irving in the season opener, he called the Irving for Thomas and Hayward for Avery Bradley (in a roundabout way) swaps “a wash” for the Celtics. “I wouldn’t say they’re the same team,” Smith said Monday. “Obviously, there are different people in different jerseys, but I don’t really think they pose a big threat to us.”

The Cavaliers beat the Celtics in a five-game conference semifinal series this past May, and Smith is correct about at least one thing: Neither team looks much like the one that finished last season.

With Thomas sidelined due to the hip injury, the Celtics started Bradley, Crowder, Marcus Smart, Kelly Olynyk and Al Horford in Game 5 of that series. Now, after returning only four players from last year’s roster, Boston is expected to start All-Stars Irving, Hayward and Horford alongside a pair of promising recent No. 3 overall picks — second-year wing Jaylen Brown and rookie forward Jayson Tatum. The Tatum news comes as a bit of a surprise, what with veteran Marcus Morris sidelined with a knee injury.

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It is certainly notable that Smith doesn’t consider the Celtics any better after a massive offseason overhaul that landed two top-25 players in Boston, especially considering reports that Thomas won’t play until at least January. It also speaks to Cleveland’s confidence after revamping its own roster.

The Cavs will start former MVP Derrick Rose and 12-time All-Star Dwyane Wade in their backcourt, with Crowder and Kevin Love filling out the frontcourt alongside James, and Tristan Thompson moving to the bench. That’s a formidable lineup if this were 2011, but with Rose oft-injured for a half-decade and Wade approaching his 36th birthday, question marks abound for the Cavaliers after Irving’s departure.

What we do know: There’s beef between the Celtics and Cavs, LeBron and Kyrie — whether they admit it or not, and Tuesday night’s opener will be fun, if for no other reason than J.R. Smith being involved.

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Ben Rohrbach is a contributor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rohrbach_ben@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @brohrbach