Kyrie Irving Gets Real On Mavericks Fans Protesting Luka Doncic Trade

Kyrie Irving weighed in on the recent outrage surrounding the Dallas Mavericks' decision to trade Luka Doncic. He noted that the fans definitely have a right to be upset, and he doesn't take offense to them booing. Irving added that the fans are just showing their passion for the franchise and demanding better from their team. Irving referenced his own fandom of the Nets to try and give the context of what he felt.

"I think it has graduated from hate to anger... And the passion. You gotta give credit to Dallas fans, they've really cheered, not only for Luka but for the Mavericks, for some odd years. This is their community team. It's just like I felt a way when the New Jersey Nets moved to Brooklyn... Even when J-Kidd was on the Nets and he got traded, I was mad at J-Kidd for a while as a young fan."

"It's just part of human nature and this journey in the NBA business... Just the engagement we have with the fans. We have young fans, we have older fans who have been cheering for everybody. So you just gotta give everybody grace. To see emotions come out over basketball, it shows that basketball is not just a game to people, it's a spiritual experience."

"They watch their favorite players and they want to see their favorite teams. I err on the side of understanding where people are coming from. I didn't see anybody getting ejected but it is just part of the process of what we're all dealing with as fans. Gotta move forward and put our best foot forward.

Kyrie Irving has taken a sympathetic approach to the current situation with the Dallas Mavericks. He isn't the only one to show some support for the fans, as Klay Thompson also expressed some sympathy towards the Mavericks fanbase while still defending their current roster.

However, a lot of the Dallas Mavericks organization members have been less than supportive toward the fanbase expressing their discontent over the situation. Two Mavericks fans were kicked out of the American Airlines Center this week for brandishing a 'Fire Nico' sign in the crowd.

Former majority owner Mark Cuban also got into a small altercation with fans in the crowd, telling them to shut up and sit down. As for Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont, who recently threw shade at Luka Doncic when justifying the trade, was seemingly confused as to why fans were booing him.

One former Mavericks executive recently slammed Dumont for his comments, claiming that he had no part in any kind of championship success in the past and shouldn't have made the comments that he did.

The fan sentiment in Dallas is not likely to settle down anytime soon. Things are going to get a lot worse before they get better for the franchise. And with Anthony Davis' recent injury, things are not going to improve for the Mavericks anytime soon.