In Friday's 133-118 win against the Chicago Bulls, Kyrie Irving scored a season-high 54 points and pointed to the sky towards NBA icon Kobe Bryant. Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were among the nine victims that died in a helicopter crash last Sunday.

 

Kyrie Irving looked up to Bryant as a mentor and even idolized his game off him. Last August, Irving was invited to the Mamba Sports Invitational that was hosted by Bryant. Irving has been deeply affected by the passing of his mentor, however, he's played outstanding in his last two games.

After Wednesday's over the Detroit Pistons, Irving spoke about his relationship with Bryant:

“I had that type of mentorship, relationship, with him where I was able to ask him anything no matter how nervous or how fearful I was. He was just easy to approach with types of questions about what goes on in the day in and day out the basis of chasing something bigger than yourself. He didn’t give a f—- about what anybody said and helped you see inside yourself, always.”

In 18 games, the 27-year-old is averaging 26.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 6.6 assists in 33.2 minutes. Irving has missed the majority of the season with a nagging shoulder injury. Irving has played in just 18 of the Nets’ 47 games in the 2019-20 campaign.

The Nets are currently seventh seed in the Eastern Conference with a record of 21-26. They've been very inconstant this season, hower, they still remain in the playoff seeds. They'll be seeking to extend their win streak in Saturday's game against the Washington Wizards.