Which of the brothers, Lyons or Cory, comes furthest in this play in terms of genuine growth? Which brother does Wilson portray as most admirable? Explain.

That Cory grows more than Lyons does is evident in the ending of the play. Lyons in many ways inherited Troy's less desirable traits: he's selfish, obsessed with his own passions and talents, and a criminal. At the end of the play, Lyons is serving a three year sentence for having cashed other people's checks in his own name. When Cory asks if Lyons will continue to play music, Lyons replies:

"Cory...you know I'm gonna do that...As long as it do that, I'm gonna be right there playing and trying to make some sense out of it."

Lyons hasn't reached any real growth, just a new situation. He's still committed to the lifestyle he had before he was convicted, and he still reveres the passion and stubbornness that Troy preached in his lifetime.
Cory, on the other hand, has exhibited some change. He's joined the military (the Marines) in an effort to give himself some independence. He tells Rose that he won't be attending Troy's funeral in an effort to "say no" to him one last time. But Rose refuses that idea and tells him that his father will always be a part of him and that he has to learn to live with it. While there isn't much evidence that Cory learns to do this effectively right away, we do see Cory decide to attend the funeral after he talks with Raynell, his half-sister, about Troy's old dog Blue that he sang about all the time. Ultimately, Cory has gained independence financially from Troy, and Cory seems to have begun the process of accepting his father's place in his identity.