Kevin Durant said that the backlash from Kyrie Irving's social media posts that centered on an antisemitic book and movie is an unfortunate situation and that he hopes we can move past it.
Irving was suspended by the Nets for five games on Thursday, after he failed to apologize during a news conference earlier in the day for his posts. Irving apologized over the social media site on Thursday.
"I'm not here to judge anyone or talk down on anyone for how they feel, their view or anything," he said. I didn't like everything that happened. I don't think it was necessary. We could have just kept playing basketball and not said anything. I don't like a lot of things.
He said he didn't condone hate speech or antisemitism.
Just wanna clarify the statements I made at shootaround, I see some people are confused..I don't condone hate speech or anti-semetism, I'm about spreading love always. Our game Unites people and I wanna make sure that's at the forefront
— Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) November 4, 2022
The Nets never considered waiving Irving in the wake of this latest controversy, according to Sean Marks.
Marks didn't say no. At this point in time, not at all.
Marks said that Irving will need to take more steps, including "counseling designated by the team" and meeting with Jewish leaders within the Brooklyn community, before he can play for the Nets again.
Marks said that he would always hope for a change. A change in attitude is a step in the right direction. Actions are louder than words. There will be more time for him to think about that.
Is that correct? He is going to have to sit down. After this, he will have to sit down with the organization. If this is the right time to bring him back, we will evaluate it.
I believe and trust in the organization to do what's right, that's what I said when asked if I agree with the team's decision to suspend Irving.
The NBA and its players get a lot of around-the-clock coverage, and as a long-time star in the league, KD understands that.
"It's the way of the NBA now, it's just the way it is." The media has a lot of outlets and stories hit fast. The chaos is coming from that location. Everyone has an opinion on this situation and we're hearing it all the time.
The cool thing about being in the gym is that once the balls start bouncing, there's nothing else in the gym. After you leave the court, everyone has microphones and microscopes looking at you, asking you what you think about it. The game is always with us.
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