Kyrie Irving Has Spoken.
Kyrie Irving seems to think that the current Jerry West logo for the NBA is outdated, and I gotta say, I completely agree. Irving said that Kobe Bryant should serve as the replacement on Instagram yesterday and it makes perfect sense.
We all know Kyrie Irving is one of the most polarizing players in the league from a sports media standpoint, but what he said in his post actually holds merit. Not only would a Kobe Bryant logo honor his life and what he did for the game of basketball, but he was a generational talent that was quite honestly, four times the player Jerry West was.
The Nets point guard had this to say on Instagram:
“Gotta happen, idc what anyone says. BLACK KINGS BUILT THE LEAGUE.”
From the league’s perspective, changing the logo would be fairly easy and cost-effective. It would also resonate better with the younger audience the NBA has fostered over the last few years since Adam Silver became commissioner. Plus Irving posted the perfect silhouette of Kobe Bryant that looks almost identical to the current NBA logo.
Simply put, Kobe Bryant was more than just a great basketball figure, he was a powerful figure that today’s generation looked up to, both in the NBA and across the globe.
Even Jerry West Wanted A Change In 2015
Jerry West himself even advocated for a logo change back in 2015 in an interview with the Huffington Post where he said:
“I hate to say it’s not a Laker, but Michael Jordan. “He’s been the greatest player I’ve ever seen. And I’m probably a harsh judge of talent in the sense that I admire players that are really good defensive players and really good offensive players. And I felt that at his time in the game, he was the best defensive player in the game, but more importantly, he was the best offensive player. And he made his teams win.”
Okay, West didn’t say it should be Kobe Bryant, but at that time Kobe was still in the league anyways. It really is time for a change, especially considering the racial tension within the United States in the last few years.
The bottom line is that Kyrie Irving is absolutely right, the league would be nothing without black players in it, and black kings like Kobe made the NBA what it is today. Bryant played a massive part in building the modern NBA, and he would be a perfect fit for the new logo.
