Thoughts on ETHUSD and the 'institutional' narrative

Watching $ETHUSD hovering around the $1865 mark today, up slightly. Seems like every other commentator is shouting about institutional adoption being the primary driver for any upward movement from here, citing ETF applications and big money inflow. I'm not so sure. My take is that while institutional interest is nice for legitimacy, the real, sustainable pumps in crypto always come from retail sentiment and widespread utility. Institutions are in it for the long game, sure, but their entry often just creates more liquidity for range-bound trading rather than the explosive moves retail FOMO can generate. Is the focus on institutional money just a convenient narrative to explain away lukewarm price action, or am I missing the bigger picture here? Push back on this, I'm genuinely curious if others see it differently.