We spend a majority of our formitative years under the guide of an older contemporary. Whether it's our parents defeating us in athletic and intellectual feats until we develop to match their level or chasing an older sibling's path, it is a feeling we've all shared.
Life as an adult in their early career is similar. Young professionals are often paired with more seasoned members of their field in order to learn the tricks of the trade. Very few are blessed with the grace of knowing the entirety of their situation from the get go, why not pass on some wisdom?
This trickles down to professional sports. Whether it's coaches or veteran players, there is value perceived in those who have "done it before." That 10, 5, heck maybe even 1 percent edge could mean all the difference when an entire season is hanging in the balance. But you've heard all of that before.
Kyrie Irving spent his early years with almost no guidance. A comically young Cavs team that lacked quality veteran players was the NBA equivalent of trial by fire, and Irving found ways to turn that into individual accolades. Yet the common tropes that come from being a young talented player with individual success that found himself on losing team after losing team. Effort and desire is naturally questioned and that question becomes exploited by radioheads who venture into the qualitative and unknown. If Kyrie wanted team success more why wouldn't he play better defense?
Still Irving put together signature moments and accolades, until LeBron decided to come to town. For the first time in Kyrie's professional career -- and probably his short season at Duke -- he had that mentor type. The guy who's done it before. Fortunately for him, this guy also happened to be one of the best to ever step on the court.
The next three years were a rocky, but overall positive experience. The team success came, but sometimes the questions didn't wash away. As the second guy, Irving reaped praises, but still had his flaws picked apart during failurs. Much like how Kobe only became a ball hog, me-first egomaniac once the three peat with Shaq was over. It just comes with the territory.
People question the validity of Irving's desires this summer to spurn LeBron and the Cavs in favor of joining a trendy Celtics team that will certainly put Kyrie's face on the flagship franchise. Instead of playing with the best of an era, he'll be trying to slay goliath as "the guy." Is he ready for that responsibility? And if winning is what matters, why would he leave? He most likely would see more team success in the cushy protective role as Cleveland's second-in-command.
As humans, we're all driven by different motivators. Most want to see success or happiness, but the way we all define those two things as very differently. Often times in sports we see only one accomplishment as the ultimate decider of success. Titles. The idea of Kyrie potentially spurning his best chance of our definition of success is something most minds instantly reject.
Yet, what Kyrie feels is something we all naturally feel as we grown into our own person. We feel compelled to step out of the shadow and into the spotlight. To show our predecessors that we are their equal, and can handle the load we've seen them carry before us. To some, that meaning of success and happiness relates more to building something of our very own. To those people, anything achieved without that feeling of creation has a shallowness to them.
Kyrie Irving wants to create. That's a very respectable want.
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