Kyrie Irving hasn’t said much publicly since he asked for a trade out of Cleveland. While LeBron James is tweeting and sending pointed workout videos on Instagram, Irving quietly fulfilled his Nike obligations with a tour overseas and sent out some loving Instagram stories but never addressed the trade.
He’s still not talking about wanting away from LeBron and the Cavs, but on Friday he took to Instagram to talk about a special colaboration he’s doing with Kobe Bryant on a pair of Nikes.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BXqTLTQlw1E
Irving told a story about when he was 17 years old playing in the Nike Extravaganza basketball tournament in California. He wore a pair of Bruce Lee edition Kobes, his team won, and they became a beloved pair of shoes to him.
“Hands down my favorite shoe ever,” Irving said.
The memory inspired him to create a similar shoe with Nike, which Irving says is a way to honor Bryant as well as a fond basketball memory.
“It was thinking about a way to commemorate that moment as well as the relationship and mentorship I’ve been able to develop with an incredible person.”
He then turned the camera away to show off the yellow and black Bruce Lee Kyrie Threes, which look pretty sharp if you ask me.
This seemed much less like a snipe at a teammate than just a straight up ad which, amazingly, is a refreshing change of pace from the rest of the NBA offseason.
