Kyrie Irving had one of the more forgettable seasons in Boston. Irving donned the Celtics jersey in 2018. These two seasons of his career are not ones that pop on his resume. The reasons for his fallout with Boston still remain unclear. Irving riled up the Boston crowd and promised to make a return. He kept his desire to leave on the quieter side of things. When Irving announced his departure, it took the Celtics and the NBA by storm. Celtics fan and tennis legend Nick Kyrgios was heartbroken at this news.

Kyrgios and Kyrie have had a long friendship. The two have a sneaker collaboration together with Kyrie’s Nike brand of shoes. Irving and Nick are both from Australia and share a love for sports. Kyrgios has always been fascinated by NBA culture. In fact, the Australian tennis star can also ball.

The two are still friends now that the Nets have Kyrie as a point guard. Kyrgios wore a ‘Kyrie 5’, inspired Vapor X in Melbourne. Meanwhile, Irving wore a ‘Kyrie 5′ based on Kyrgios’ Vapor.

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Kyrgios was quick to take credit for inculcating the basketball culture into tennis. He is one of the pioneers of NBA popularity and expansion in the tennis world. Often, Kyrgios wears NBA jerseys on his tennis court and when he is on tour. He feels that he is responsible for bringing the tennis and NBA world together.

Kyrie Irving and Kyrgios collaborate on a sneaker to bring NBA and tennis together.

In an interview with NBA Australia, Kyrgios talked about his love for the NBA and his passion for basketball.

Kyrgios said, “When I’m out playing basketball, I don’t think of anything for that, you know, hour to two hours. It’s just having fun, seeing the ball, just hearing the ball bouncing going through the net. It’s my meditation, I feel like I’ve got no problems in the world.”

Kyrgios has been playing basketball since he was 14. He loves being part of the NBA culture. According to Kyrgios, he was the first tennis player ever to wear an NBA jersey to a stadium and tour. He is a trendsetter in the union of the tennis and basketball world.

Nike also has announced further collaborations between the two athletes like the ‘Air Zoom Vapor X Kyrie 5 X NYC’. His collaboration with Kyrie has opened up several doors for the NBA and tennis world.

He said.“I was wearing the shoe and then he debuted it on the floor when he played for the Celtics. That was a special moment in my career. I felt like I brought tennis and basketball a lot closer.”

Like the entire NBA fandom, Kyrgios mourned the passing away of his favorite player, Lakers legend Kobe Bryant. Kobe truly had a global impact as he found a way to influence an Australian tennis athlete.

Kyrgios mourns the passing away of Kobe Bryant

In a tragic accident, Kobe Bryant, Gianna Bryant, and 9 other passengers on a helicopter passed away due to a fatal crash. This shook the entire NBA. Nick Kyrgios all the way in Australia too mourned his passing.

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Kobe Bryant was one of the greatest of all time. He had won 5 NBA championships with the Lakers and had gone toe to toe with Nick Kyrgios’ favorite team, Boston Celtics, on several occasions.

On the day of Kobe’s passing, Kyrgios wore his jersey to celebrate his life and was about to play tennis legend Nadal in the same attire. Players like Kyrgios, Kobe and Kyrie truly have put the NBA on a wider map!