The Brooklyn Nets have officially ruled Kyrie Irving out for their Friday matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Irving sat out Brooklyn’s 122-109 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night, and multiple reports at the time suggested that he would not travel with the Nets for the second leg of their back-to-back. As such, him being ruled out of Friday’s game should come as no surprise.
Nevertheless, the reason for Irving’s continued absence has been the subject of much debate.
Late Thursday, Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson of Heavy.com reported that the Nets guard didn’t participate in Philly game because he “didn’t want to play.”
Naturally, that didn’t sit well with some fans. Later in the evening, Nets head coach Steve Nash pushed back on the idea that Irving simply opted out of playing for no real reason.
“I don’t believe that to be the case,” Nash said on a Zoom call with the media.
So what really happened? Robinson eventually provided some context for his original tweet that shined a light on Irving’s rationale for sitting out, and provided clarity on what his thought process was.
Nets insider Anthony Puccio seemingly confirmed Robinson’s assessment of the situation.
“One source close to Irving’s camp told The Association that Irving did not play because he is protesting against the riots at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, and the lack of repercussions for the police officers who shot and killed Breonna Taylor.”
On a Zoom call with the media, Brooklyn swingman Caris LeVert also seemed to corroborate that the reason for Irving’s absence is related to him processing what’s going on in the world.
“That’s a personal issue for him,” LeVert said.
“We support him, You know, he’s our brother. We went out there and competed without him. Like I said, it was a personal issue for him.”
Irving is widely regarded as one of the most free-thinking and unique players in the NBA today, so his reaction to objectively significant world events shouldn’t come as much of a shock.
By all accounts, Nets players have and continue to stand behind Irving, so it’s unlikely that his missed time will cause any significant issues within the organization.
More must-reads: