Kyrie Irving's On-Court Similarity to Kobe Bryant is Something Worth Celebrating

Kobe Bryant was an inspiration to most NBA players, but there are few talents he touched more than Kyrie Irving.

That's why Bryant's death hit Irving especially hard, so much so, in fact, that he didn't feel comfortable playing in the Nets' game against the Knicks this past Sunday, just hours after Kobe's passing.

Irving was a frequent visitor to the Kobe Bryant academy, working with tomorrow's basketball stars (including Gigi) to improve their game and bonding with one the sport's all-time greats. This is just one subject that paired these two magicians on the hardwood.

Kyrie takes a lot of flack for his leadership style and rightly so. He's harsh, sometimes to a fault, and even actively stated the Nets need to acquire more talent to make a playoff push just weeks ago. Remind you of anyone?

While we never respected it at the time, that brutal honestly to teammates and opponents alike is part of what made Kobe so special and unique.

Irving is a maestro with the ball in his hands, and assumes he's the most talented dribbler on the court at all times. It remains to be seen how that'll mesh with Kevin Durant, but in terms of confidence Irving's hubris is often compared to Bryant's. The two saw the game the same way, and their deep, sometimes astrological explanation of things rubbed many the wrong way.

Above all else, Irving saw Bryant as a mentor and someone to aspire to be, and similar to Kobe, many basketball fans are unlikely to truly appreciate Uncle Drew until his NBA career is over.

If recent events have taught us anything, let's break that trend.