Kyrie Irving is learning how hard leadership is

Boston Celtics star Kyrie Irving reached out to LeBron James to apologize to his former teammate. The reason for his apology? Realizing leadership is no walk in the park.

Kyrie Irving is the only player for the Boston Celtics to appear in the NBA Finals, let alone win one. So by default, he’s the Celtics unquestioned leader from a talent and experience standpoint.

But this season, with a Celtics roster fully healthy, has not been a joy ride. And Irving has realized that the same principles LeBron James attempted to teach him in Cleveland, are the same things he has tried to instill with this Celtics team.

Of course, Irving would end up leaving James and the Cleveland Cavaliers for the opportunity to have his own team. But as the Celtics have struggled to live up to their potential, Irving admitted in a postgame presser that he now understood the challenges LeBron was facing, and called to apologize to his former teammate.

"“Obviously, this was a big deal for me, because I had to call [LeBron] and tell him I apologized for being that young player that wanted everything at his fingertips, and I wanted everything at my threshold.  I wanted to be the guy that led us to a championship. I wanted to be the leader. I wanted to be all that, and the responsibility of being the best in the world and leading your team is something that is not meant for many people.”"

Wants and needs are very different if you’re assessing a situation. Of course, Irving wanted to share duties with LeBron. But LeBron needed Irving to play a certain way to complement his skill set and to help the team flourish.

Irving is facing a similar situation in Boston, as Irving needs his fellow teammates to complement his own skillset and head coach Brad Stevens’ offensive philosophy. But there are many talented players on the Celtics roster, and they have their wants, too. T

Irving has shown he can be the team’s top player and his talent is unquestioned. But being a leader of men is another skill set entirely. Irving now realizes what LeBron was attempting to do.