When Weldon Irvine wrote “To Be Young, Gifted, and Black” for Nina Simone in the late ‘60s, he was talking about folks like Kyrie Irving.
On Sunday, the Nets guard – enigmatic to some, infuriating to many – completed the best regular season of his ten-year career after averaging 26.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 6 assists per game by becoming just the ninth player in NBA history to join the prestigious 50/40/90 Club, as he shot 50.6 percent from the field, 40.2 percent from three, and 92.2 percent from the free-throw line. That exclusive group includes names like Larry Bird (twice), Mark Price, Reggie Miller, Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Malcolm Brogdon, and Irving’s coach Steve Nash, who achieved it four times in his Hall-of-Fame career.
But, while Irving was making history on the court with his efficient play as he and his teammates were making the Cleveland Cavaliers look like the Washington Generals, it was what Irving said after Brooklyn’s Saturday night win over the Chicago Bulls that was most newsworthy, as he explained just how unimportant playing a kid’s game can be at times.
