More than ever, women are making an effect on the NBA, from front office work to coaching. In 2022, Kyrie Irving signed Shetellia Riley Irving, his stepmother, as an agent after he accepted this element of the league. Isiah Thomas recently brought attention to this dynamic by praising the latter for being the only lady of color in the circuit.
The NBA has a rich 78-year history, and diversity has always been essential to its success. The 63-year-old emphasized a post on Instagram that provided detailed information about Riley’s ascent to this position. He shared this upload from his narrative and turned the attention to her new title.
Soon later, a screenshot of Thomas’s efforts was shared by an NBA fan on X, which was formerly Twitter, attracting the interest of other fans.
The first post discussed Irving’s recent conversation with Marc J. Spears of Andscape. This highlighted how, amid the most trying time in his life, the Dallas Mavericks player turned to his stepmother.
Isiah Thomas on IG pic.twitter.com/xG6FXpBPvC
— tragicpatek (@tragicpatek) June 25, 2024
Shetellia never lost faith in her stepson, even when the league punished him for breaking COVID procedures and Nike severed their relationship with him due to questionable remarks. She thus became a part-time CEO and player agent for Irving’s business, A11Even Sports, in September 2021. She quickly became an expert in this area by utilizing her background as BET’s previous vice president of ad sales.
This relationship developed into a fruitful one over time. She disclosed, in an interview with Sports Illustrated,
“It’s not about me shifting him or him shifting me. It’s really about us walking in this partnership together and learning from each other… We’ve built trust and consistency… I don’t want Kyrie to come back two years from now saying ‘I signed this really bad deal and it didn’t make sense,’ because he didn’t understand it…”
Kyrie Irving’s career has been shaped up a lot by his stepmom
Shetellia was crucial in helping Kyrie Irving begin a new chapter at the Dallas Mavericks and put a stop to his contentious time with the Brooklyn Nets. After leading the team to their first NBA Finals appearance in 13 years, the NBA great is now enjoying the rewards of his labor.
Irving could only be pleased with this choice in retrospect. Consequently, he went so far as to exhort the other players in the league to emulate him, saying,
“It’s incredible to see the racial barrier lifted in a different way in my generation… Bringing my stepmom on board wasn’t just about making her the first Black female agent. It was about offering a new perspective that could be studied for years to come”.
Thomas was sure to take notice of this success tale. He has spent decades advocating for these improvements as an activist.
