The “Curse of Lucky” has struck again, much to the delight of Boston Celtics fans trolling Kyrie Irving. As has become an unlikely annual tradition, Kyrie once again suffered team misfortune immediately after airing a new Nike sneaker featuring a shamrock as part of his signature Kyrie 8 shoe line.
The peculiar phenomenon labeled “Curse of Lucky” dates back to Irving’s controversial Celtics tenure, which ended ignominiously in 2019 without fulfilling championship aspirations. That season, Kyrie released a St. Patrick’s Day-themed Nike Kyrie 5 colorway featuring a four-leaf clover on the heel tab.
But Irving then badly sprained his knee in the sneaker’s debut game, sidelining Boston’s star guard a month during a crucial stretch, ultimately dooming playoff hopes. Coincidence or not, the immediate injury following the Lucky shoes felt ominous for fans resenting Irving’s polarizing antics.
Remarkably, history repeated when Nike dropped another Celtics-inspired Kyrie edition flaunting a golden shamrock charm in 2020. Hours after sporting the green kicks for Brooklyn, Irving injured his shoulder and missed 26 straight games. Once again, the ill-fated Saint Patrick’s sneakers coincided with misfortune for the mercurial Irving.
The “Hex” continued this Thursday when Nike officially launched Irving’s latest Kyrie 8 Lucky GREEN sneaker featuring another prominent shamrock icon nod to his Boston stint. Just hours after sharing publicity stills on Instagram, Irving and the Dallas Mavericks announce the All-Star will miss multiple games with lingering knee soreness requiring PRP injection treatment.
The news delighted Bostonians still harboring ill-will from Irving’s ugly New England exit, his refusal to properly apologize to scorned fans keeping grudges burning. On Celtics Reddit, supporters delighted in “Lucky’s Revenge” striking anew, calling it karma for Irving disrespecting the storied franchise. Plenty chided Nike for continually courting bad vibes not learning from past jinxes.
While all three instances surely constitute coincidence, and Irving contributed immense individual scoring talents across stops, the bizarre timing amuses diehard Boston fans. After generating acrimony torching bridges callously, Celtics supporters feel somewhat vindicated through supernatural hexes sabotaging Irving sequentially after flaunting Lucky tributes.
Irving and Nike likely continue risking Lady Luck’s wrath undeterred creating annual tributes ignoring the #CurseofLucky phenomenon delighting Bostonians. But as long as injuries befall Irving soon after each edition, superstitious observers will delight seeing karmic justice served haunting their estranged former cornerstone.