LeBron James goes into detail about relationship with Kyrie Irving

LeBron James was candid on his relationship with Celtics star Kyrie Irving after the two made headlines earlier this season following the Celtics guard's apology phone call.

James explained he has "always love(d) Kyrie" and that he saw a lot of "growth" in the 26-year-old to be able to make a phone call like he did.

"I think I've always loved Kyrie, from before I met him, until when I became his teammate, to even now," James said Saturday during his All-Star weekend media availability. "So the phone call, more than for me, I think just to see his growth ... It takes a real man and a real person — and a real person to understand who they are — to be able to call, or to do anything and be able to see their wrongdoings or believe they have some wrongdoings.

"And then be able to come to grips with that and then be able to either apologize or say that, 'At that point and time, I thought I was ready for something, but I really wasn't.' I love Kyrie. I love everything about Kyrie."

LeBron James on his phone call from Kyrie Irving: It takes a real man to come to grips with what happened and apologize or say that, “‘At that point in time, I thought I was ready for something, but I really wasn’t.’” pic.twitter.com/2Q74TOm8t2

— Kyle Goon (@kylegoon) February 16, 2019

Amid frustration with the Celtics' youth, Irving revealed last month that he called James to apologize for "being that young player that wanted everything at his fingertips" when the two were teammates for the Cavaliers for three seasons. The call came after Irving was critical about some of his current teammates, saying, “The young guys don’t know what it takes to be a championship level team."

Irving, on the other hand, wasn't as willing to talk about his relationship with the Lakers star. When the topic came up, Irving simply said, “That’s none of your business."

Kyrie when asked about the nature of his relationship with LeBron “That’s none of your business.” Next question. #NBAAllStarMediaDay pic.twitter.com/nD7YAjXb3i

— Karisa Maxwell (@KarisaMaxwell) February 16, 2019