Kyrie Irving is under fire once again after his recent antics with the Brooklyn Nets and his decision to miss the last couple of games due to “personal reasons”. The point guard has been absent in the last four games of his team and nobody knows when he will be returning.
Kyrie was recently spotted partying with his sister and father, which raised a lot of eyebrows around the league and has reportedly made the Nets unhappy with the attitude of the player. As the days go by, more people believe that Kyrie has lost his passion for basketball and he’s closer to retiring than winning his second NBA championship. He’s been focused on social justice matters lately, which makes people think he will follow that path and stop playing the game.
With all these rumors circulating, it’s fair to remember that Kyrie could have hinted at an early retirement in 2017 when he was just 25 years old. He visited Channing Frye and Richard Jefferson’s podcast, where he revealed that one of his best friends believed he wasn’t going to be 30 and still be playing in the NBA (1:00:00 mark).
Kyrie: One of my best friends told me that he really thinks that I may become the Lauryn Hill of the NBA and just leave early before I even get to my prime.
Channing Frye: The Barry Sanders.
Kyrie: I don’t know if it’s gonna happen. I’m 25, so by the time I get to 10 years in the league, I’ll be 29.
Kyrie: I’m not gonna say I’m going to be the Lauryn Hill of the game but that’s what my best friend told me. … I love this game with all my heart, but there’s just so much knowledge to be acquired and so much that should be happening but isn’t.
On a new episode of Channing Frye and Richard Jefferson's podcast, Kyrie Irving hinted he may retire earlier than expected. H/T @NBA_Reddit pic.twitter.com/5Y4C3Ho7nf
— Alex Kennedy (@AlexKennedyNBA) May 18, 2017
For those that don’t know, Lauryn Hill was a legendary rapper, songwriter, and record producer that left the public scene where she was at the top of the world. The music industry and pressures from the fame prompted her to leave that life behind and disappear all of a sudden.
Kyrie didn’t say he is going to do the same and not even compared with Hill, but they could have similar paths if the 2016 NBA champion decides to call it a career before he turns 30. Right now we’re two months away from him turning 29, so this whole “prophecy” could become a reality in the short future.
