The Brooklyn Nets announced that they have suspended NBA star Kyrie Irving for at least five games following his failure to disavow antisemitism.
The suspension could last longer than that as the organization wants to see him take more steps beyond just the apology that he issued on Instagram a few hours after his suspension was announced.
This is something that should have come sooner as there were ample opportunities for Irving to denounce anti-semitism and he just wouldn’t say it. No contrition was shown, as he didn’t even apologize for what he did.
It would not be a shock if Irving is away from the team for longer than five games. Given how little remorse he showed before the suspension was levied against him, it could take him a little while to accomplish everything that the Nets are hoping that he does.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant & Brooklyn Nets Updates
While none of his peers shared any opinions on the matter, there have been a few people speaking up now that he is suspended. One of those players is Kevin Durant, who offered an unfiltered response that some people may take as being tone-deaf.
“I’m not here to judge somebody or talk down on the life or how they feel their views,” said Durant. “I just didn’t like anything that went on. I felt like it was all unnecessary. I felt like we could have just kept playing basketball and kept quiet as an organization.”
Just keeping quiet and playing basketball was not an option in this case. The fact it took the Nets as long as it did to act was bad enough, but endorsing for it to be swept under the rug as if nothing happened is not the way to go about it.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant & Brooklyn Nets Updates
Durant is correct that he isn’t there to judge or talk down on what someone else believes, but he has to be tired of being asked about Irving. He is a lightning rod for controversy and is entitled to his opinion, but when it gets to the point that it has in recent days, something needs to be done.
He has since clarified his comments, saying more directly what he meant.
That is more in line with what we need to see. It would have been nice had someone spoken up earlier, but at least we know Durant is on the right side of things. For someone that cares so deeply about the game of basketball, all of these off-the-court things that he has had to deal with since coming to the Nets are likely wearing on him.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant & Brooklyn Nets Updates
Constantly having to answer for and discuss things a teammate does has to get old quickly. And he knows that this isn’t the end of it.
“This is the way the NBA is now, media, so many outlets now and their stories hit pretty fast now,” said Durant. “So that’s where all the chaos is coming from. Everybody has an opinion on the situation, and we’re hearing it nonstop.”
The Nets are currently 2-6 on the season, already parting ways with head coach Steve Nash. Not having one of your best players in the lineup for five games likely won’t help, but given the severity of the situation, this could be an addition-by-subtraction thing for the Nets. With Irving away for a little while, they can focus solely on basketball, something they haven’t been able to do for a while.
