Last month, Kyrie Irving turned heads when he wore an exclusive colorway of his signature Kyrie 3 sneaker, one adorned with a rose on the side to honor his mother, Elizabeth, who died when he was 4 years old. However, the personal touch was nothing new for Irving, who has kept his mother's memory close to his heart -- and on his feet -- with each model of his Nike sneakers. While many players write personal messages on their shoes from time to time, Irving has made his personal tributes an integral part of his signature line, providing unique insight into the person behind the basketball player. Those touches will come together this weekend with the release of the Kyrie S1 Hybrid, a remix of his first three signature sneakers into a single model. The new shoe includes details from his upbringing and family cues that have carried through the series, all of which have helped make the Kyrie line Nike's best-selling basketball sneaker. Each of Irving's sneakers features a callout to his mother's name on the shoe, along with a "JBY" inscription, an ode to the phrase of encouragement she'd often tell Kyrie. I celebrate it," Irving said. In our culture today, everyone is always wanting to put the other person down for trying something different, or trying something new. As for me, I want it to be celebrated.
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Kyrie Irving’s NBA career to date
On the one hand, Irving is as supremely talented a ball-handler as the league has ever seen. Yet Irving also has a history of dividing locker rooms, upsetting teammates, and putting his foot in his mouth publicly. Regardless of your opinion of him as a basketball player, Irving has an undeniably complex personality. To a large extent, that personality has been shaped by tough losses in his personal life — particularly the loss of his mother. His rookie year was a phenomenal one, despite the Cavs going just in the lockout-shortened season. Irving averaged Irving soon proved himself as good — if not better — in terms of postseason play. Yet Irving, chafing at playing second fiddle to James, forced his way out of Cleveland after just one more season. He ended up spending two underwhelming seasons in Boston. While his individual numbers remained strong, his abilities as a leader and team player came under new fire.
The tragic death of Kyrie Irving’s mother
She was adopted at nine days old by Lutheran minister George William Larson — , and his wife Norma Larson, who worked in health care and renamed Elizabeth Ann Larson. Through biological her mother, she has two sisters Elizabeth and Kelly as well as another sibling, Steve through her foster parents. As a child, Irving was spirited from the start, her stated goal as a child was to become the first woman President of the United States and she developed informed, outspoken views. Because her father was a pastor, he frequently moved their family, Irving spent eight childhood years in Mitchell, South Dakota, before settling in Puyallup, Washington, where Irving played volleyball and basketball at Rogers High School. As a sophomore in , she helped guide Rogers win the 4A SPSL title and finished with a fifth-place finish at the state tournament. During her junior year, her team finished and with a fourth-place state finish. In her senior year, her team finished third-place state finish. A classically trained pianist, Irving able to read music or play by ear, crooned gospel-choir hymns while she cradled her children in her arms. She lulled her children to sleep with religious lyrics learned inside the Lutheran churches that her father ministered in from Mitchell, South Dakota to the Puget Sound. She studied political science at Boston University and played volleyball there.
Irving played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils before joining the Cavaliers in After another Finals appearance in , Irving requested a trade and was dealt to the Boston Celtics. He played as a Celtic for two seasons, after which he signed with the Brooklyn Nets as a free agent in In , he starred in the film Uncle Drew. Irving grew up in West Orange, New Jersey , where he frequently attended his father's adult-league games. In fifth grade, he was offered a scholarship to Boston University by then-head coach Dennis Wolff. Irving played for Montclair Kimberley Academy in his freshman and sophomore years in high school. He averaged Patrick High School because he felt he needed a bigger challenge.
