By: Randy Louis
My apologies to Kyrie Irving, for I have taken your gift for granted. The general public has reacclimated themselves with the game they fell in love with and how you have returned to your wizardry form. At the age of 32, (fellow 92 baby here whoop whoop) Irving has reestablished himself as one of the NBA’s most talented players. In a season where the narratives have gone from LeBron’s longevity, to the Nuggets dominance, Halliburton’s Pacers being analytical darlings, The Warriors showing their age & the Knicks resurgence, one of the most unheralded stories of this season has been the play of Kyrie Irving.
Irving in his first full season with the Dallas Mavericks teaming up with Luka Doncic has seen them win 50 games & a few wins away from punching a ticket to the NBA Finals. Sure, Irving has only suited up for 58 of the 82 games during the regular season yet it has been his maturity & leadership that has inspired All Star teammate Luka Doncic to play arguably the best basketball of his career. Kyrie’s leadership and willingness to allow others to grow in Dallas mirrors that of his time with LeBron James in Cleveland. The tide has flipped and Kyrie is the 32 year old who’s maturity as a man cultivated a leader, and the teammate the younger Luka needs to grow his game. His resurgence back as one of the NBA’s Elite wasn’t a doubt due to his ability however attributed to his availability & willingness to buy in.
From the moment Irving requested a trade in 2017, his name has been dragged through sports media, barbershop talk, anywhere that had dialogue on anything sports related. Granted, a portion of the narrative was self-inflicted where many saw a divide between the magician on the floor and the person off the court. His time in Boston was tied to his departure from LeBron & whether or not he was stunting the growth of Jayson Tatum & Jaylen Brown despite being healthy in both seasons, Boston looked like a top 3 team in the East. However, the narrative took away from the wizard on the court and more about the man off of it. That narrative followed to Brooklyn where despite a fresh start and awaiting his running mate KD in a year, Kyrie had Brooklyn jumping and single handedly had them performing as a top 4 seed in the East prior to COVID. Then, he was suffering the grief of losing friend/mentor Kobe Bryant, he got injured, the season ended, the world quarantined in its first global pandemic in over a century and social injustice was at an ALL TIME high with police brutality & protests. When the season relaunched in The Bubble he had some reservations about restarting the season only for a portion of his Brooklyn run was tied into his opposition about taking a vaccine to play holding up the team’s potential at a championship. Lastly, a link to a documentary that vilified Kyrie in a way that even the African American community would disown Kanye West for. From meetings with religious & league officials, his representatives, sponsors, Kyrie had to go on an unfair apology tour before Brooklyn booted him to Dallas and lost his longtime sponsorship with NIKE.
At that point Kyrie Irving was Public Enemy #1. The Kanye of the NBA, a genius on the hardwood, and should be heralded as such yet, he’s a villain, a bad guy. What makes it worse is that the general consensus bought into it just a bit. Stephen A. Smith is a prime example of this thinking. Today, he lauds the name Kyrie with such reverence after the smear campaign since 2017 when he asked to be traded from The Cavs knowing: 1.) LeBron had a role and knew he screwed that up & 2.) Kyrie admittedly knew he blew a good thing and let his hubris dictate his movements years later. Admittedly I’m guilty of buying into the narrative and my rationale was more on the line of his distractions affecting his availability on the court whether it’s getting the jab, or how he handled his relationship with coach Steve Nash. Hell, I say it’s a classic case of building a star until the moment their norm shifts public opinion creating a villain only to make them an exonerated hero (Ha! Wrestling tropes can apply in basketball narratives!). In heated debates, even personal ones with my brother & others (via The Sports Hit List; Yerrr Sports Show) there’s been something from those exchanges that hasn’t been addressed much throughout the years surrounding Kyrie.
We often forget that at the time he asked for a trade in 2017 that he was a 25 year old man who wanted to find his own identity as a man. As a person of the same age I can empathize and understand the plight of identity & a role despite the vast difference between our tax brackets. Despite his intelligence as a person his hubris at times got him in positions that have also contributed to the narrative. Again! I tell you that’s something I can relate to from my own mistakes. For him to have the foresight in 2019 to see the errors of his part in the Cleveland break up or, understanding in Brooklyn he wanted to help the young duo in Boston grow but went about it in a way he was regretful, to today where he’s at peace with the mistakes and criticisms said about him speaks to the man he is at this stage. Kyrie’s performance in these 2024 NBA Playoffs has been an indication that Kyrie is living up to that Uncle Drew character in real time and it potentially can assist in the Dallas Mavericks returning to the Finals. A feat like that would make for a feel good comeback story for the history books.
The Apology Should Be As Loud As The Disrespect.
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