The reasons Kyrie Irving wants the late, great Kobe Bryant to be the NBA logo instead of Jerry West are understandable, especially from his perspective.
Bryant was his mentor.
Irving views Bryant as the player who set the standard for his generation.
"Black Kings built the league," Irving reiterated Thursday.
There's a lot of truth in that statement as the NBA has been predominately Black for decades, but West, a White man from a small town in Cabin Creek, W. Va., helped build the league as did Larry Bird, Bill Bradley, "Pistol" Pete Maravich, John Stockton and many other Caucasians.