You Actually Don't Need To Defend Kyrie Irving

I was in the midst of writing an article about how absurd Kyrie Irving’s punishment was. After posting a link to an incredibly stupid antisemitic documentary on his Instagram and then refusing to apologize or even acknowledge the dumb shit in the movie, the Brooklyn Nets suspended him until he completed a list of weird ass tasks.

Here’s what Kyrie has to get done if he wants to play for the Nets again:

Apologize and condemn the film
make a $500,000 donation to the anti-hate causes
complete sensitivity training
complete antisemitism training
meet with ADL
meet with Nets owner Joe Tsai

At first glance, this list grossed me out.

Just an insane list of chores for a man who has made his stance clear. What does an apology do after he’s made it quite clear that he is under the impression that he cannot be antisemitic because black people are the original Jews or whatever silly conspiracy he’s invested in?

But cool, I get it. Make him apologize and we’ll move on. But donating half a million to the Anti-Defamation League is where things get really nasty. The ADL has historically wielded its power almost overwhelmingly against black and brown people. They’ve worked with the FBI to spy and put surveillance on Muslim communities. Shit, they worked with J Edgar Hoover in the 60’s to spy on Martin Luther King Jr.

The ADL has consistently been on the wrong side of history under the guise of being an anti-hate group or whatever. Good for them for now getting another half million from Kyrie to help pay for more missiles to shoot at Palestinian kids. A fantastic grift.

And when has mandatory ‘sensitivity training’ ever reshaped someone’s perspective on the world? You sit there pissed and most likely leave with even more resentment toward the group you were supposed to be learning about.

All of these things are true but none of that changes that Kyrie isn’t the victim here. Somehow, this entire narrative has shifted from “I can’t believe Kyrie is promoting antisemitism” to “I can’t believe this is happening to a black man”.

I agree that the punishment is strange and severe. Robert Sarver was a racist pervert and no one required him to go through sensitivity training and donate half a million to a sketchy organization.

I also think Kyrie didn’t actually do anything except believe a very foolish conspiracy about where black people originally come from.

Like, if you believe Jews are the most powerful people in the world then you have to make sense of how the most powerful people in the world suffered the holocaust and in order to get from point A to point B you either have to believe the holocaust never happened or you have to believe Hitler is some fucking hero. From what I’ve seen, that documentary makes both points which is how you know it’s all bullshit.

But again, I think Kyrie is just dumb and arrogant. I don’t think he should have to do a million hours of community service but that doesn’t make him a victim here.

There are so many examples of blatant racism in this world and this Kyrie situation doesn’t need to be that. Kyrie Irving is not the victim of anything here. No one made him promote that movie and no one made him defend it over and over again. He did this shit to himself.

Racism isn’t making him sit through training.

Racism is cutting him and all 30 NBA owners agreeing not to sign him like when Colin Kaepernick stood up against police brutality. Brooklyn very clearly still wants him on the team and they’re giving him extremely easy tasks so they can feel better about him playing on Christmas Day.

These aren’t real consequences. This isn’t some organized attack on a black man. This is a guy who knows he’s talented enough to get away with saying dumb shit and took advantage of Brooklyn’s refusal to have any real values or principles.

Shannon Sharp and Jay Williams and every black media member turning this into a race issue is exactly what Kyrie Irving has wanted all along. To be a martyr for an important cause and go down in history books as important.

That’s not what this is.

Kyrie promoted an antisemitic movie that he obviously DIDNT EVEN WATCH and instead of simply saying “I have no problem with Jewish people”, he saw an opportunity to be perceived as some sort of hero of free speech or whatever the fuck.

Don’t defend this idiot. He’s literally fine. Like, he’s rich and can play basketball as soon as he watches some boring slideshow. None of this is that important. Kyrie Irving is a loser.