Former Duke Point Guard Kyrie Irving was the number one pick in the 2011 NBA Draft, heading to the NBA to play for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

But now that the league is in a lockout, Irving is heading back to Duke to continue his education.

Irving, who spent only one year at Duke, is making good on a promise he made to his dad, who played hoops at and graduated from Boston University.

“I just said to Kyrie, listen, if you decide to leave you have to promise me to get your degree in five years,” said Drederick Irving.

Irving is enrolled in four classes, and while he made the decision to leave school for the NBA, it’s pretty clear he is not, and never was, a go to school just to play basketball guy.

“I love the vibe,” said Kyrie. “I love Duke. I’m back because I love it, Duke is the place.”

He already knows there is more to life than just basketball.

“I wanted to set my mark in the basketball world at the same time, me having my mark on the real world is something I wanted to do. And me having my degree when I’m finished playing this game, I’ll be able to do that.”

copyright 2011 woio. All rights reserved.

Read More: nba lockout, Indiana Pacers, New Orleans Hornets, Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Clippers, Charlotte Bobcats, Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers

The first two weeks of the 2011-2012 NBA Season have been cancelled after the league failed to reach an agreement with the Player’s Association on Monday night (Oct. 10, 2011).

As a result, the following games on the Boston Celtics schedule have been cancelled:

Nov. 2: Cleveland Cavaliers at Boston Celtics
Nov. 4: Boston Celtics at Atlanta Hawks
Nov. 5: Boston Celtics at Indiana Pacers
Nov. 9: Charlotte Bobcats at Boston Celtics
Nov. 11: Los Angeles Clippers at Boston Celtics
Nov. 12: Boston Celtics at Cleveland Cavaliers

Unfortunately the work stoppage may continue after the two-week period expires as no new developments have been reported and the two sides are currently far apart on most (if not all) of the major sticking points.

The NBA and the Player’s Association are expected to meet at some point next week, which leaves them little time to save the remainder of the season if by some miracle the wrinkles are ironed out in time to play ball.

NBA stories don’t come more unsettling than the one that saw then-Cleveland Cavaliers guard Delonte West(notes) arrested two years ago while driving a motorcycle (complete with sidecar) while carrying a disturbing amount of guns and rifles. The resulting fallout has created a litany of legal woes for the talented hybrid guard, who now plays for the Boston Celtics.

Little has come out about how West put himself in that dangerous, frightening situation until recently, when SLAM’s Tzvi Twersky asked Delonte to tell his side of the story.

West was already groggy from his prescribed nightly dosage of Seroquel when some ne’er do wells partying in his home studio came across his stash of guns and hunting weapons. In his take, West insists he was attempting to keep his mother happy by riding his stash to another one of his houses. From SLAM:

“Ma Dukes came running upstairs into my room, cursing me, saying she wanted all these MFers out of my house,” recalls West. “I came to like, What’s going on? I was already on my Seroquel trip. A few of my cats had found some stuff in the studio and they were living the whole gangsta life thing—guns in the air and this and that,” continues West. “And I said, ‘Oh my God. What the **** are y’all doin’ in here? Y’all got to go. Momma ain’t on that. Kids are running around upstairs. It’s time to go.’”

Gassed up from the commotion, West decided it would be prudent for him to relocate the guns to an empty house he owned nearby. So, with his other vehicles blocked in by guests’ cars, and expecting it to be a short trip, he haphazardly loaded up his Can-Am and placed the weapons in a Velcro-type of bag—”not a desperado, hardcase, gun-shooting-out-the-side type case”—and set off.

“I’m on the Beltway, cruisin’,” West says, voice high, emotional and inimitable. “Soon I start realizing I’m dozing in and out. I open my eyes and I went from this lane to that. I’m swervin’, and by the time I wake up, I’m about three exits past my exit.”

Yikes. It could have been a lot worse, apparently.

The interview is a must-read. It delves into West’s continued struggles with bipolar disorder, and discussing the heretofore unrevealed fact that West was under a version of house arrest during the 2010-11 season. It also includes the line “I ain’t lookin’ for no nipple to cry on.” So you can’t lose, really.

Related: Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Guard Delonte West has played six seasons in the NBA, with his contracts adding up to about $14 million.

The Cleveland Cavaliers paid West about $9 million of that bonanza from Feb. 21, 2008 — when he was acquired from the then-Seattle SuperSonics as part of a three-team trade — through the end of the 2009-10 season.

Cleveland traded West to the Minnesota Timberwolves on July 26, 2010. Though they regarded him as a gifted player, the Cavaliers understandably felt they could no longer depend on him due to his personal problems.

West played last season with the Boston Celtics, and is scheduled to become a free agent. Now, though, with the NBA and the NBA Players Association unable to settle on a new labor deal, the league has locked out the players. If the lockout continues into the season’s scheduled start in late October, players won’t get paid.

He’s not yet missed any paychecks, but West is preparing for such an event.

With the national unemployment rate at 9.1 percent — and much, much higher than that when including the people who have stopped looking for work – and with West’s savings from his modest income maybe running dry, he’s taking action.

On his @CharleeRedz13 Twitter account, West tweets:   

It’s official.. Pride 2 the side.. just filled out a application at Home Depot.. Lockout aint a game..