28-04-2025
Big Kyrie Irving Announcement Made After Mavericks' Disastrous Season Ends
Mother's Day is less than two weeks away, and Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving is unconventionally honoring his late mother.
A "Mother's Day" colorway for his ANTA KAI 2 will arrive on May 3. His mother's name, "Elizabeth," appears on the left shoe. The right shoe will honor Sneaker Room CEO Suraj Kaufman's mother, Ellen.
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Irving's mother passed in 1996 due to complications from sepsis syndrome, an inflammatory condition associated with infections. Kyrie was only four years old at the time of her passing.
The 33-year-old was born in Melbourne, Australia. His father, Drederick Irving, played professional basketball in the South East Australian Basketball League at the time of Kyrie's birth. Drederick, along with his aunts, helped to raise Kyrie.
Anta Sports Products Limited, a Chinese sports equipment company, makes the ANTA KAI 2. It is the world's largest sports equipment company by revenue. K.A.I. are Irving's initials, and they stand for Kyrie Andrew Irving. His partnership with Anta Sports began in September 2023 after he began his NBA career with a shoe deal with Nike.
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A nine-time NBA All-Star and NBA champion, Irving is one of a handful of players to make the 50-40-90 club during the 2020-21 season. The numbers signify when a player has a 50% field goal percentage, 40% three-point field goal percentage and 90% free throw percentage while meeting the minimum thresholds to qualify as a league leader in each category.
Kyrie Irving of the Dallas Mavericks talks to media members during the NBA All Star-Practice.© Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
Other NBA players to accomplish this feat are Larry Bird (twice), Mark Price, Reggie Miller, Steve Nash (four times), Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Durant (twice), Stephen Curry and Malcolm Brogdon.
Irving has played his last three seasons with the Dallas Mavericks. This season, he averaged 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Dallas endured a difficult 2024-25 season, finishing with a 39-43 record. The franchise missed out on the first round of the playoffs after losing in the play-in round to the Memphis Grizzlies.
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