Ex-Cavaliers star explains why Kyrie Irving didn’t want LeBron James’ mentorship

Upon James’s return to Cleveland, Irving had achieved All-Star status, yet his youth prevented him from guiding the Cavaliers to the playoffs.

James’ arrival changed everything for Cleveland. The franchise quickly shifted their culture and turned into a legitimate title contender overnight.

After departing in 2010, James returned for his second tenure as a two-time champion with the Miami Heat and was arguably the world’s best player.

Former Cavaliers center Kendrick Perkins recently claimed that Kyrie did not want LeBron’s guidance because he looked up to Kobe Bryant instead.

“He idolized and looked up to Kobe so much that he wouldn’t give Bron a chance to be the big brother figure.

“Even when y’all won it, I wasn’t there, but I’m just keeping it real, Kyrie never looked at Bron like that big brother, Kobe was that big brother to Kyrie,” he said on Road Trippin podcast.

“So like when he burned off, it wasn’t surprising to me although I wasn’t there, I was like ‘Damn, they tripping, they could have ran off a few more,’ but he was tired of being under the shadow, Bron could never really get that arm around Kyrie, cause Kyrie didn’t allow him to in my opinion.”

Irving and James could have added more titles together

Irving and James worked well together on the court. While James needed possession to control the game, he still found ways to let Irving shine.

The defensive focus both players commanded also opened up opportunities for teammates, giving others more space to operate. That balance helped make Cleveland a real force in that era.

Players like Iman Shumpert, J.R. Smith, and Kevin Love all played key supporting roles around them. The roster fit gave the Cavs a solid foundation around their two main stars.

Since then, James has gone on to win another championship with the Lakers while Irving has moved between teams without making it back to a deep playoff run.

Ty Lue spoke about how disappointed James was after Irving’s trade became official. While four seasons together were enough to show they had something special, there will always be questions about how many more titles they could have chased if they had stuck together longer.