Once a beloved figure in Cleveland, Nets guard Kyrie Irving seems to be at odds with everyone, even fans of his former team.
Irving was fined $25,000 Thursday for directing obscene language toward a fan, the NBA announced.
The incident, which can be seen below, occurred with 4:19 remaining in the second quarter of Brooklyn’s 114-107 loss to the Cavaliers on Monday. Irving, who played his first six seasons in Cleveland, told the fan: “I got a championship (in 2015-16) and the motherfuckers are still ungrateful.”
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Kyrie’s incident with a Cavs fan 👀
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— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 20, 2023
The Cavaliers drafted Irving with the first overall pick in 2011. He spent his first six seasons in Cleveland, where he earned Rookie of the Year honors and made the All-Star team four times.
Things soured between Irving and the Cavs’ front office to the point where he worked his way out of town, being traded to the Celtics in 2017. He spent two seasons in Boston before signing as a free agent with the Brooklyn Nets in 2019. Earned his seventh All-Star selection in the 2020-21 season.
Irving’s conduct appears to have violated Article 35 of the NBA Constitution which revolves around the conduct of players.
Article 35 (c) says: If in the opinion of the Commissioner any act or conduct of a Player at or during an Exhibition, Regular Season or Playoff Game has been detrimental to or against the best interests of the Association or the game of basketball, the Commissioner shall order such Player a fine not to exceed $50,000, or may order the temporary suspension of said Player from any connection or duties with the Exhibition, Regular Season or Qualifying Games, or may order both the fine and the suspension.
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Irving is the second Nets player to be fined for incidents involving profanity in the past week. Kevin Durant was fined $15,000 last week for his profanity-filled press conference
Wednesday marked the two-week anniversary of Irving’s return to the NBA. He is unvaccinated, which means he can’t play in home games at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center unless the franchise reportedly pays a small fine.
In five road games, Irving is averaging 22.0 points, 5.4 assists and 5.0 rebounds in 34.4 minutes per game.