Celtics Reportedly Make Kyrie Irving's Number Available to Rookies

As if the rumors surrounding Kyrie Irving's departure from Boston weren't aggressive enough, new news that leaked Monday may be the most telling of all these anecdotes.

With Boston's newly drafted rookies getting ready to pick numbers and start practicing, it seems the team has made No. 11 -- Kyrie's number -- available for selection, per first-rounder Grant Williams.

Irving free agency rumors have been swirling for months now, and it seems the Celtics may have officially let the ship sail on a Kyrie return to TD Garden. Giving away a player's number is almost an unofficial goodbye, and offering a player's number to a rookie makes it seem like it's all but sealed at this point.

Also, Irving hasn't exactly been quiet with regards to the dysfunction in the Boston locker room or where he wants to go in free agency. We knew about the issues months ago, and Irving himself has flirted with the idea of heading to Brooklyn, wearing the blue and orange in the Garden, or teaming up with LeBron on the West Coast.

Regardless of what happens, if this is a true story, it's (at the very least) a smack in the face to the magic-making point guard on the way out the door.