The Brooklyn Nets finally made a move with point guard Kyrie Irving, suspending him for at least five games after he shared video and quotes of anti-semitic views on his social media. The Nets and the NBA gave Irving ample time to denounce unequivocally that he was not anti-semitic and when he failed to do so, a suspension was handed down.
This could very well be the ending to Irving’s tenure in Brooklyn. This is another dark cloud that he has put over himself and the organization and some people believe he may have played his final game with the Nets. Nick Friedell of ESPN is one of those people.
Irving eventually issued an apology on his Instagram, which general manager Sean Marks said was a good first step. However, there is a lot of work that remains to be done if Irving is going to get back on the court with the team.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, there are six things that Irving has to do to complete to return to the team. Irving must apologize/condemn the movie that he shared on his social media page and donate $500,000 to anti-hate causes. This was something that he was moving toward doing already with the ADL, but his donation was not accepted after it became apparent that it was not sincere.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Kyrie Irving & Brooklyn Nets Updates
The Nets want him to attend training for sensitivity and anti-semitic while also meeting with the ADL and Jewish leaders. Lastly, Irving needs to meet with owner Joe Tsai to demonstrate an understanding of the situation.
That is about as clear-cut as things could get for Irving to continue his career with the Nets. Alas, there seems to be real doubt that he will do all six steps.
According to Marc Stein on his Substack via NBA Central, that list was made in part because they know that Irving won’t accomplish all of them. Failure to do all six things on the list could lead to Irving’s outright release from the Nets.
That is quite a bombshell and a report from Stein. Releasing Irving would be an unprecedented move. Despite all of the baggage and distractions that come along with having Irving on your team, he is a supremely talented basketball player.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Kyrie Irving & Brooklyn Nets Updates
As we have seen time and time again, talent will eventually win out. Teams do not care as much about public image and morals as making money and winning games. It may take some time, but it would not be shocking to see a team bring Irving in as he has the skill set to help a team win a championship.
