The 2024 Playoffs are a massive revelation on where the league is finally heading. What’s remaining in the field is widely dominated by youth, rising stars, and superstars at their peak who are looking to showcase their talents and further make a name for themselves on the biggest stage in basketball.

Interestingly, those who are the established greats of the game are already out and gone, which leaves Kyrie Irving as the last man standing in his generation. It’s quite strange for Kai, as it has been an unfamiliar scene with the Dallas Mavericks aiming for the championship. Irving considers it a challenge to prove the case that the torch is yet to be passed and that they still have something left in the tank.

“I’ve been competing with those guys for so long and seeing them every year,” Irving said. “It’s been pretty much our generation running the Finals, the Eastern Conference finals, Western Conference finals. [The shift has] just been quick. I don’t want to say I know that those guys are looking at the light in the tunnel. I can’t speak for them.

“But to see this newer generation come in and to see how it’s played out, I’m excited. It keeps me motivated and inspired to continue to lead my generation, because I was the youngest of that generation watching them,” Kyrie added.

Most of the iconic players we all know and watched throughout the years are nonexistent now in this critical stage of the NBA season. Stephen Curry and his Golden State Warriors didn’t even qualify for the playoffs after collapsing at the Play-In Tournament. In the first round, LeBron James got booted by the defending champs Denver Nuggets, and Kevin Durant was completely swept by Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves. Not to mention, the trio of Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and James Harden with the L.A. Clippers were also eliminated in six games by Kyrie and his Mavs squad.

It might signal that the end of an era is finally nearing, as the new age is about to commence. However, Irving can only love what he is witnessing from the youngsters under the bright lights of the league, especially his co-star Luka Doncic.

“These young kids, they have no fear,” Kyrie said. “When you have that much talent and you have no fear, the world is yours.”

Kai is on the rise with the Mavs

As it is, Irving is making the most out of his presence in the 2024 Playoffs. Kyrie is averaging 21.0 points, 5.6 assists, and 4.2 boards while shooting 49.4% from the field (44.6% from three) as he and the Mavs are now just one win away from beating the Oklahoma City Thunder and clinching their spot in the Western Conference Finals.

A technician. https://t.co/Uq63BvRlau pic.twitter.com/bLTZptmphv

— NBA (@NBA) May 11, 2024

A potential championship with the Mavs would give Kai a gratifying feeling that his generation is still widely represented and relevant amid the NBA’s shift of power between the past and the future.