Kyrie Irving Is Your NBA Live 14 Cover Athlete

It’s no secret that NBA Live has taken a backseat in the basketball gaming market to 2k’s series. In a bold move to revitalize the brand after a four year absence, EA Sports has announced that star Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving will be the NBA Live 14 cover athlete in the company’s attempt to reboot and revitalize the basketball game series.

Irving has been inserted into the spotlight ever since being drafted by Cleveland, being molded into the team’s next great franchise player. His play last year (22.5 points/5.9 assists/3.7 rebounds/1.5 steals per game) as well as his numerous accolades (2012 NBA Rookie of the Year, 2013 All-Star Player and Three-Point Shootout Champion) certainly makes him a player worthy to grace the cover.

The news also creates an intriguing storyline, pitting up the underdog Kyrie Irving representing NBA Live 14 and the struggle for NBA gaming supremacy against NBA 2k14 and their announced cover athlete LeBron James. It’s not difficult to remember that LeBron ceremoniously ditched Cleveland for Miami where he won 2 Championship trophies for the Heat in back-to-back years (2012, 2013). It will be very challenging for NBA Live 14 to leave victorious in this battle, as the game will be headed only for certain next-generation consoles, which will have a much narrower install base than the hundreds of millions of PS3, Xbox 360 and PC owners combined that will be able to pick up NBA 2k14 on their already-purchased devices.

NBA Live 14 will be released this holiday season on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. You can view the announcement trailer below.