Kyrie Irving's ailing knee commanding strangers' attention

OAKLAND, Calif. – Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving can't escape questions about his left knee with the NBA Finals a day away.

"I'm asked about it all the time whether it be the regular person walking around in Cleveland or someone here in San Francisco," Irving said before the Cavaliers' practice at Oracle Arena on Wednesday in advance of Game 1 against the Golden State Warriors. "I'm walking down the street and they ask me how's my knee doing? I'm like, 'I'm fine. Thank you.' My knee is OK. It's like, 'Are you playing? Are you playing Game 1?' I'm like, 'Yeah, I'll be playing.'

"It's an adjustment, but it's what it is at this point. But I'm just going to go out there and will myself to play."

Irving had an MRI on his knee on May 11 that revealed tendinitis during a second-round playoff series against the Chicago Bulls. The All-Star missed Games 2 and 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Atlanta Hawks with the knee injury, but played in the series finale in Game 4. Irving has said he expects to be less than 100 percent in the NBA Finals, starting with Game 1 on Thursday night.

"Whatever he can give is going to be great for our team," teammate LeBron James said. "Kyrie at 50 [percent], Kyrie at 60, Kyrie at 70 is better than Kyrie at zero."

Irving will have gotten eight days off from playing between the end of the Eastern Conference Finals and start of the NBA Finals. He averaged 23.5 points, 3.0 assists and 4.5 rebounds during two regular-season games against Golden State. Not only will Cleveland need big offensive play from Irving, but he is also expected to often guard the NBA's Most Valuable Player in Stephen Curry of the Warriors.

"It's definitely tough because obviously mentally and physically you want to be in line," Irving said about his injury. "It's just like some of the things I'm thinking about doing mentally, you know, your body just kind of stops and you catch yourself a little bit sometimes.

"You've got to get off the ball. But for me, it's just about finding my spots and seeing where I could be more effective out there for my teammates."