Kyrie Irving will be the NBA 2K18 cover athlete

May 21, 2017; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving (2) drives to the basket against Boston Celtics guard Avery Bradley (0) during the second half in game three of the Eastern conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports /

Kyrie Irving has landed the coveted spot on the cover of NBA2K18.

On the day in which the NBA Finals will commence, 2K Sports broke their own news and announced Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving will grace the cover of NBA 2K18 on the standard edition of the game. Irving joins Shaquille O’Neal as the cover choices, with O’Neal being an option for the “Legend Edition” and “Legend Edition Gold.”

Consumers will be able to have access to the game by Sept. 15 if they pre-order for Early Tip-Off. Here are some of the bonuses when pre-ordering Irving’s edition of the game.

5,000 Virtual Currency (VC)
10 MYTeam packs delivered once a week
MYPlayer Apparel
And more

Irving is the first Cavalier to grace the cover and first Eastern Conference guard since soon-to-be free agent Derrick Rose, when he was a member of the Chicago Bulls back in 2013.

Here’s what Irving had to say on being selected as the game’s cover athlete for the first time, in a press release from Take-Two.

"It is well known that I’m an avid player of this series and I am honored to be the cover athlete of NBA 2K18,” said Kyrie Irving, who has his sights set on another ring, making a run for back-to-back championships. “It’s surreal to be featured on the cover and I can’t wait to dominate on the virtual court with all of my fans this fall."

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The celebrity Irving has created for himself with his “ankle-taker” ball-handling skills and ability to come through in the clutch are all boons as to why he makes sense to grace the cover. It also doesn’t hurt that he plays a character of his for Pepsi, being “Uncle Drew.” Now all Irving has to do is produce in The Finals against the Golden State Warriors and make the company look good with their selection.

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