Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge said Kyrie Irving may need maintenance surgery on his sore left knee in the next few years.

Kyrie Irving may need that offseason knee surgery after all.

Weeks ago, a report from Cleveland.com’s Joe Vardon said Kyrie Irving has been in need of a clean-up knee surgery on his repaired left knee and was prepared to use that as a trump card to force his way out of Cleveland.

Irving fractured his kneecap in Game 1 of the 2015 NBA Finals and had surgery to repair it. He’s dealt with some lingering knee soreness caused by tendonitis in the seasons since and has been shut down this week after the soreness became concerning.

He’s had to rest a few times this year with the idea being that when he starts to feel it in his knee, he needs to sit out and let it rest before it aggravates into a sprain or something worse.

Back when Irving was asked about the report and whether he did need knee surgery, his response was, “That sounds like a HIPAA violation.”

While Irving is certainly under no obligation to share medical information, especially that which is not applicable to his current status to play, he is incredibly private about nearly anything in his life and game.

But it turns out Irving may eventually need the surgery in one of the next few offseasons, according to his boss Danny Ainge.

In an appearance on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Toucher and Rich, Ainge said that Irving may need a surgery at some point in the next few offseasons, but that the maintenance requirements on his knee is something the team was aware of and prepared for when they traded for him.

“So, he has some a surgery that may need to have, but maybe not this summer,” Ainge said. “Maybe the following summer or the summer after that. I think he could probably do it any time he wanted, but I’m not sure it’s needed at this moment.”

The trade for Irving took time to consummate because Isaiah Thomas initially did not pass his physical. But one of the reasons it took so long to develop was evaluating the health of Irving’s knee as well. Eventually, the team was comfortable it was manageable long-term.

“There was a lot of discussion and that was a big part of it going forward too,” Ainge said. “Kyrie had the injury two and a half years ago now, three years ago, so we knew there would be maintenance issues, but his long-term prognostication is good. He’s going to have some maintenance issues here or there.

“We knew coming into the season he wasn’t going to be an 82-game guy. a 72- to 75-game guy in order to keep him fresh for the playoffs and that’s what it’s been. We’re just extra cautious. We have the good fortune of being extra cautious right now. we want him resh and healthy and we want him that come playoff time.”

So when Irving has needed to sit out with soreness a few times earlier this year, there was no concern internally. When the soreness started becoming more prominent and permanent in the past few weeks, they knew it was time to be even more cautious. They’re essentially locked into the two seed if they don’t collapse down the stretch, so he can take all the time he needs. Even if that two seed was in jeopardy, they have made it clear this season they are prioritizing health over standings.

“His body will tell us I think he was planning on playing right now and he would still be playing, but it was just a little sore and it wasn’t right,” said Ainge. “He played the other night, he played well int he first half, but it just wasn’t feeling right, so he sat out the second half and sat out yesterday. I don’t know if he’ll play tomorrow night or Sunday, but he’s just taking it day-by-day.”

Irving’s surgery would likely be a minor non-invasive procedure to clean up scar tissue, reducing the discomfort of tendonitis. It’s not uncommon for players to have minor clean-up procedures during the offseason and spend the next couple of months strengthening the joint again.

The fact that Irving is dealing with tendonitis in his knee at just 25 is certainly concerning, but it does not mean his career arc is shortened if they continue to manage and treat it properly.

He is expected to play in one of Boston’s two road games this weekend, so the team is ready to breathe a sigh of relief after one of the most injury-plagued weeks and seasons in memory.