Kyrie Irving Signs His Dad—BU Alum Drederick Irving—to His Shoe Line
Father of Dallas Mavericks star played for Terriers in late 1980s and is in the BU Athletic Hall of Fame

In 2017, Kyrie Irving gifted his father, Drederick Irving (CAS’88), his first Boston Celtics jersey after a news conference in Boston. Kyrie played for Boston from 2017 to 2019. Photo by Winslow Townson via AP
Kyrie Irving Signs His Dad—BU Alum Drederick Irving—to His Shoe Line
Father of Dallas Mavericks star played for Terriers in late 1980s and is in the BU Athletic Hall of Fame
Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving, whose team faces the Boston Celtics Thursday night in game one of the NBA Finals, is reportedly signing his first client to his new ANTA shoe line: his dad, and Boston University alum, Drederick Irving (CAS’88). Drederick is a former Terrier star athlete who played at BU from 1984 to 1988. He was inducted into the BU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1995.

“My father is the one who told me to want more,” Kyrie once said in a People magazine interview. “My father is the one who told me not to settle.”
The Athletic reported Tuesday that this marks the first time in pro sports a player has signed his dad to a signature shoe deal and that the sneakers will be released in September. After being dropped by Nike in 2022, Kyrie signed with Chinese brand ANTA in 2023. Kyrie will be on the floor in Boston as the Mavericks play the Celtics in the best-of-seven NBA Finals. The eight-time All-Star played for the Celtics for two seasons, from 2017 to 2019.
Drederick was also a Boston basketball superstar in the 1980s, playing four years for Boston University. With 1,931 career points (15.8 points per game), the 6-foot-4 guard finished his career as the Terriers’ all-time leading scorer at the time, now behind Tunji Awojobi (CAS’97) and John Holland (CGS’09, COM’11). As an upperclassman, Drederick posted 97 career three-pointers on 42.3 percent shooting. He also holds the record in career field goals made (716, fourth), among others.
He was captain of the 1987–1988 Terriers, and at the end of the season, won the Lou Cohen MVP Award, which recognizes the player most responsible for the team’s success. BU retired his Terrier jersey right after his graduation.

Drederick had a free agent tryout with the Celtics but didn’t land on an NBA roster. Former Terrier Brett Brown (MET’83), now an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs, recruited him to play for his Bulleen Boomers of the South East Australian Basketball League. (Kyrie was born in Melbourne, Australia, and is a naturalized citizen of the country.)
Drederick met Kyrie’s mom, Elizabeth Larson (CAS’89), when they were both BU athletes. Elizabeth played basketball and volleyball as an undergrad and gave birth to Kyrie in 1992, but died just four years later at the age of 29 after contracting sepsis while in the hospital. Kyrie and his sister were raised by their dad and aunts.
In an interview with the Boston Globe, Kyrie said that he spent a lot of time in Boston growing up and even attended BU’s basketball skills camp. After former Terrier coach Dennis Wolff offered him a scholarship, “I thought I was going to go to BU in fifth grade,” Kyrie said. In fact, he played at national powerhouse Duke University for a year before becoming the first overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft.
“This whole thing is a fairy tale,” Drederick said about his son’s career in an interview years ago with ESPN. “Kyrie always hoped to play in the NBA, just as I did. He made it, so I feel like I’ve made it, too.”
Kyrie has credited his dad for being by his side throughout his career. “If you are fortunate to have a father like I have,” the Mavericks star said in the same interview, “you’re given a foundation.”
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