Kyrie Irving has undoubtedly learned a ton in his first season playing alongside LeBron James, which is what you would expect when a 23-year-old joins forces with one of the greatest players to ever live. But can’t we just leave it at that?
One reporter took it a step further on Monday, and things quickly got awkward. Irving was asked about Tristian Thompson calling LeBron a “great father” to his kids last week. Kyrie took the question to mean Thompson was saying LeBron is a great father to Thompson, and Irving got confused.
“What? Oh, great father, I thought you said … I interpreted that completely wrong,” he replied. “I thought you said he was a great father to (Thompson). I was like, what?”
Unfortunately, that is exactly what the reporter was asking. She then followed up with a question about what type of “parental role” LeBron has played for Irving.
“Parental role?” he asked. “Honestly (laughs) I don’t know how to answer that question. He’s been a great leader for us. … I have one father — that’s my dad, Drederick Irving. In terms of learning how to win on the court and also how to carry ourselves off the court, I feel like (LeBron has) been a great influence.”
Had the reporter done her research, she would have known that Irving lost his mother at age 4 and is very close with his father. Although, it doesn’t take a lot of research to know that only seven years separate Irving and LeBron. We’re not talking about Tim Duncan and a 19-year-old rookie.
LeBron has always praised Irving and has definitely made him a better player. There’s no need to make the narrative more dramatic.
Video via Complex
