Reviewing: “The promise and danger of Kyrie Irving’s maturation for the Cavaliers” CBS Sports
Following the completion of USA Basketball mini camps much has been made about Kyrie Irving, including his stellar play and what it means for his future and for the Cavaliers. Matt Moore at CBS Sports put out a great article yesterday about Kyrie’s future, but focused on his maturity. As editor of FoS, and a professional counselor, the mental aspect of Kyrie is of high interest to me. You can read the full article from Moore here. Below I will review sections or paragraphs from the article, with the goal of not taking anything out of context, but going deeper into what is written by Moore.
"Before we get started, Kyrie Irving is going to be a Cavalier for the next six years no matter what, barring something catastrophic. He’s on his rookie deal, and players sign extensions coming out of their rookie deals, especially when they’ll be as lucrative as Irving’s. He has the potential to play with a major star in 2014 and the Cavaliers have absolutely billed him as their future. He’s not going anywhere."
- For Cavs fans, this is a relief. Though many of asserted as much, Cavs fans are oft nervous about their stars leaving them. National media often like to play up the “Stars want to leave in free agency” storyline to draw readers, so Moore stating the pretty obvious is nice to read for Cavalier faithful.
"The Plain Dealer spoke with Irving, who opened up on why he has been more outgoing, and more “engaging” since the end of the season that brought questions about his attitude and leadership. Irving reportedly was unhappy with how last season’s disaster unfolded, and walked off the court on Fan Appreciation Night at year’s end without thanking the fans or giving away his gear. But he’s taking a new approach this summer."
- The end of the season was highly frustrating for the fans here in Cleveland. How Irving handled it was less frustrating and more concerning. From the reported bruised heal that he blew off to the overall attitude he displayed the question became whether he could be the leader of the franchise in the way Kevin Durant and Tim Duncan are for their small market teams. His conversation with The Plain Dealer speaks volumes that Irving understands the concerns and noticed the need for change as well.
"The Cavaliers have a tremendous amount of promise next season. Tristan Thompson quietly continues to develop as a quality big man. Anderson Varejao is set to be an All-Star if he can just avoid a seemingly endless series of freak injuries. Should Andrew Bynum actually be healthy this season, he can tip the scales of a team towards a playoff spot. Dion Waiters has the capacity to take over games on both ends if he can learn to adapt his game off-ball.Jarrett Jack can operate in much the same manner as he did in Golden State to much success beside Steph Curry with Irving. The talent is there."
- Often times fans over emphasize the value or talent of their team’s players, often Cleveland does so to a fault. While nationally the signing of Bynum has been met with reservation, the followers of Dan Gilbert’s Cavaliers have felt a jolt of energy from the jolt of talent brought in this offseason. With the additions of Bynum and Jack, as well as Earl Clark, and the drafting of Anthony Bennett and Sergey Karasev the Cavs have brought in a bevy of skilled players. Varejao returning can be seen as another addition to the team. What should most stick out to Cavs fans is that a national media member sees Thompson as “a quality big man.” Thompson is a quiet player who made great strides between year 1 and year 2. Recognition of this is hard to find due to A) Playing in Cleveland, B) Playing on a lottery team and C) Playing in the shadows of Kyrie. Unlike the last Cavalier young player’s meteoric rise, Irving is being surrounded by young talent for him to develop with.
"So Irving is moving forward, a 21-year-old kid talking about taking leadership of his team. He’s set out to move both the team he’s been given and his own team forward. He’s already built up a cultural identity as a clutch player and the guy from those wacky Pepsi commercials. The future is bright and Irving is going through the process of taking his place among the league’s elite."
- Leadership is not a psychological profile that is easy to define. Generally speaking those with Extroverted personalities tend to be bent towards leadership due to the two primary pieces of extrovert-ism 1) Gaining energy from social interaction and 2) Ability to respond quickly with little laps between stimulus response. Irving presents with a more laid back personality but that does not lend credence to whether he is Introverted or Extroverted. Instead watching him being interview during a Cavs Summer League game or while “smack talking” with Kobe Bryant last year at USA training seem to lend towards a more extroverted bent. What do you see?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3d-PJsWfAYY
"The NBA is a business, and looking out for yourself is a part of that. But investing in being the kind of person Irving talked about above, the mature leader he says he wants to be, and not just in pursuit of what he wants, has greater dividends towards what he will mean to fans, and as a byproduct, investors in his future.Maybe those outside things don’t appeal to Irving. Maybe he just wants to play basketball. But if he wants to win a title in Cleveland, on his own terms, he would be wise to understand that takes a commitment as well, and putting aside his own most ambitious self-goals.Either way, Kyrie Irving is coming of age in a complicated time in the NBA, and the stakes are about to get much, much higher"
- Moore finished his article beautifully. With his talent level Irving has the ability to be whatever he wants to be in the NBA. He has a great stroke, amazing handle on the basketball and a high basketball IQ. He quickness with the ball and strength at the rim show that he could be a quality on the ball defender and his basketball IQ lends credence to his ability to play smart off the ball D and get his hands in the passing lanes. His writing and scripting of his Pepsi Max commercials shows that his off the court possibilities are also unlimited. It is in the areas reviewed here in Moore’s article that Irving has to make choices that will lead him ultimately where he hopes to go. For Cavs fans its refreshing for someone to take responsibility for their failures as Irving has this offseason. Cavs faithful should look for an improved Kyrie, who along with Jack and a very vocal Thompson should provide the leadership needed to take this team to the playoffs. As Moore stated Irving’s journey and the stakes are about to get much, much higher.