Kyrie Irving called out the Boston Celtics’ young players following Saturday’s frustrating loss in Orlando, and left some bruised feelings in his agitated wake.

Two days later in Brooklyn, he said he never would call out teammates publicly again. But Irving had swallowed his own pride by then and done what most – perhaps himself included – would have considered unthinkable.

The man who barely has been able to talk about LeBron James since his trade from Cleveland called and apologized to his former teammate, now with the Lakers, for his attitude as a young player. That’s where Irving was driven by his own attempts to lead his younger Celtics teammates.

“Obviously, this was a big deal for me, because I had to call (James) and tell him,” Irving said Wednesday night. “I apologized for being that young player that wanted everything at his fingertips, and I wanted everything at my threshold. I wanted to be the guy that led us to a championship. I wanted to be the leader. I wanted to be all that, and the responsibility of being the best in the world and leading your team is something that is not meant for many people.

“(James) was one of those guys who came to Cleveland and tried to show us how to win a championship. And it was hard for him, and sometimes getting the most out of the group is not the easiest thing in the world.”

Irving’s current experience made him better appreciate how he was at a younger age. “I’ve been the young guy, being a 22-year-old kid and I want everything. I want everything right now,” Irving said.

ARON BAYNES returned Wednesday from a broken hand.

“To get them to tell me I’m cleared is good,” said Baynes. “I think they were just sick of me asking. I figure the more I keep annoying them, the sooner I’ll be out there.”

The Celtics were happy to have Baynes annoying someone else, specifically the Raptors.

“The rebounds, the box outs, hitting guys when they’re cutting through the lane,” Gordon Hayward said. “We missed him.”

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