Kyrie Irving Discusses His Controversial Social Media Post And Apologizes Ahead Of His NBA Return

Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving recently issued an apology and a message to the Jewish community in an interview with SNY ahead of his return to the court on Sunday.

Earlier this month, Irving was suspended by the Brooklyn Nets for failing to deny his support for antisemitism during reporters' questions about posting a link to a film that included antisemitic messages on social media.

When asked by Ian Begley of SNY what the past few weeks and the process has been like for the NBA guard, Irving said, "It was a learning journey to be honest with you. It was a lot of hurt that needed to be healed, a lot of conversations that needed to be had, and a lot of reflection."

He continued by explaining, "And I got a chance to do that with some great people from the Jewish community, from the black community, from the white community. I've had so many conversations with all of our races and cultures and religious groups of people just try to better find perspective on how to live a more harmonious life. I'm a man who stands for peace. I don't condone any hate speech or any prejudice and I don't want to be in a position where I'm being misunderstood on where I stand in terms of antisemitism or any hate for that matter for anybody in this world."

Irving said the conversations he had over the past few weeks were "very moving, very impactful" but he didn't want to get into too much detail about those conversations. "It helped me become more aware of the repair that needed to be done, the healing that needs to be done still. Here I am just really acknowledging the fact that it hasn't been easy. Some of it has been painful," he said.

Begley said that many people were standing with Irving and said he didn't have any "hateful ideation towards Jewish people," and then asked if he is antisemitic. "No, I'm not antisemitic. I never have been. I don't have hate in my heart for the Jewish people or anyone that identifies as a Jew. I'm not anti-Jewish or any of that," he said.

"And it's been difficult to sit at home with my family with them seeing all of this and having questions and the part that hasn't been hard is explaining myself because I know who I am, I know who I represent. But I think the difficult aspect is just processing all this, understanding the power of my voice, the influence I have. I'm no one's idol, but I am a human being that wants to make impact and change. I'm sorry, to not only the Jewish community, but to my family members and to my relatives because they know I stand for something bigger and I'm grateful now I get to explain myself."

Irving said he wants to focus on the hurt that he caused and wanted to apologize deeply for his actions throughout the time from posting the link to the film initially. "I'm very sorry that I had to be used as some sort of example of what not to do when it comes to dealing with all of this. I just want to deal with it better right now," he said.

The Nets' star also explained that his intent with the initial social media post was to share with those who are on the same journey as he is searching for his heritage. He said that the antisemitic remarks in the documentary were an "unfortunate aspect." "That wasn't the aspect of the post that I wanted to focus to be on," he explained. "The initial post was supposed to be for all those that are searching for more information, more history, and are able to interpret it in a way where they see it as progressive, and they learn something from it."

Irving said he now understands that some things are meant to be explained, and that the post wasn't meant as a promotion or something he was "advocating for." He said his message to the Jewish community is, "We are more alike than we realize. We have similar struggles, and I can acknowledge those. We have so much connectivity between our cultures, and I would just like that to continue."

The NBA star issued an initial apology on Instagram earlier this month after his suspension. In the past week, Irving met with NBA commissioner Adam Silver, Nets owners Joe and Clara Wu Tsai, and members of the Jewish community. Irving will return to the court on Sunday against the Memphis Grizzlies after missing eight games in the past two weeks and hopes from here to "move our world forward."