Ten years after the viral moment when a reporter asked Kyrie Irving if he considered LeBron James to be a father figure to him, the star point guard for the Dallas Mavericks referenced the exchange to show his dad off to the world.
During a recent 24-hour livestream, Irving embraced his father and reflected on the cringiest NBA reporter question ever. “I only have one father, Dredrick Irving,” said the basketball star. “This is my father, y’all.”
“W pops man,” Irving continued. “I’m glad we got to recreate that meme bro because that question was crazy. When someone asked me if LeBron was like a father figure to me, that was a crazy question.”
Kyrie couldn’t hide the disbelief in his voice that still exists a decade later. “He’s like a few years older than me and you ask if he’s a father figure to me?” Irving asked out loud. “I got a father right there, Dredrick Irving. No disrespect, bro.”
Back in 2015, Irving had a look of pure disbelief when a reporter asked him about James’ parental role with the Cleveland Cavaliers. “Parental role? Honestly I don't know how to answer that question,” he said. “He’s been a great leader for us. I have one father — that’s my dad, Drederick Irving.”
“But for us in terms of the nuances of the game and learning how to win and how to carry ourselves off the court, I feel like he’s been a great influence in that role,” Irving continued.
Elsewhere in Irving’s recent stream, he received a call from Luka Doncic, who greeted him as “Streamer!”
During their brief convo captured by cameras, Irving wondered why Doncic was up at 4 a.m. and made him promise to donate some subs to his stream.