(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Nepotism isn’t anything new in the NBA.
However, it’s one thing to get more opportunities — whether it’s to get scouted or to have access to the best training or facilities — because of your family ties, and a whole different thing to make the most of those opportunities to find success at the next stage.
That’s the case with Kyrie Irving and Rod Strickland.
For those who don’t know, Strickland is actually Irving’s godfather, and while Kyrie didn’t inherit his talents from him or make it to the league just because of his ties to him, he clearly learned a trick or two from him.
That’s why it wasn’t much of a surprise to see that former NBA coach Stan Van Gundy called them the two best below-the-rim finishers in NBA history (via New York Basketball).
“Kyrie Irving and Rod Strickland: the two best below the rim finishers in NBA history”
— Stan Van Gundy pic.twitter.com/Tbo2nc3MSI
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) May 25, 2024
That’s a fair assessment.
Strickland was something of a light Kyrie Irving, a guy who had an insane layup package and could finish with both hands regardless of some elite rim protectors roaming around the basket.
Irving has the best handles in the game, and he’s just too crafty as a scorer, boasting a big man’s footwork in a small man’s body, and his highlight tape is hours long.
Strickland wasn’t able to find the footing and success some thought he would find in the league, but he still went down as one of the craftiest and most creative finishers this game has ever seen.
Now, his godson has taken the torch from his hands and taken it to a whole new level.
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