Getty Boston Celtics guard Kyrie Irving
Does Boston Celtics star guard Kyrie Irving have much to improve on? Seriously, the guy can do it all, and he does it well. But are there any significant glaring weaknesses in his game? Well, that’s debatable. As Irving is easily recognized as one of the best guards in the game, it’s hard to criticize the man, and he knows it. When it comes to basketball though, at this point in his career, Irving is trying to turn the page.
As an established superstar, there comes an expectation of becoming a leader. Now, players don’t necessarily have to go full LeBron and become somewhat of a coach and a general manager. But prominent players are expected to be able to give out wisdom and take charge of the game when the team needs it. That’s become Irving’s newest trait that he’s been working on.
As the Celtics are still recognized as one of the Eastern Conference’s best, they still lack a bit of championship experience on the squad. That’s where Irving becomes the most experienced player. Although he’s been to the NBA Finals a couple of times, Irving did manage to snag a ring back in 2016 with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Irving wasn’t the face of the team at the time, but he decided in 2017 that he wanted to branch out from under LeBron’s shadow and become the leader of his own franchise in Boston. Now, Kyrie is just outsourcing for help and advice through the process.
What Has Kyrie Done to Improve His Leadership Skills?
Natural leadership is hard to come by. And if a player doesn’t have it naturally, they have to work at being a leader through advice from those who have done it first, and for longer. So, Irving has a few consultants that he gets advice and motivation from, but understand that these guys keep a confidential reputation. For whatever reason, Kyrie Irving does not want to tell the world who his motivators are.
“I will never tell you guys,” Irving said with a smile at shootaround on Wednesday. “Never tell you guys. I like having a mystical wisdom, like, older board of people I like to go to.”
Check out Kyrie’s Advice from His Secret Consultants
So far, Kyrie has done well for himself in 2018. Despite a slow start for Boston, Irving has done an excellent job keeping his head on straight, and his mind focused on the ultimate prize that is winning. Over the last few weeks, Kyrie has been recognized for taking on his locker room leadership role as he has consistently motivated his teammates to want to win during their current hot streak as they climb back up in the East.
Now that Kyrie led the Celtics to coming back at the top of the conference, he’s going to have to get through the hard part of maintaining the success. The Celtics have had players say in the recent past that some guys let last year’s success get to their heads. They can’t allow that to happen again as they are starting to look like the contenders they truly are.