LeBron James is fully aware that Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving has found himself in the headlines these days because of his adamant rejection of the COVID-19 vaccine. Because of this, he was forced to skip the Nets' media day for the second straight year.
Irving, however, told reporters in a virtual press conference that he likes to keep the matter private, saying he will make an announcement eventually through the proper platform. The Nets guard has always been a bit of a recluse compared to his fellow NBA stars.
One guy who knows this all too well is Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Phil Handy. He handled Irving and LeBron James during their time together with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and Handy witnessed first-hand the introverted nature of the shifty playmaker (via Heavy).
“Until you actually get to know Kyrie, you’re going to get a lot of speculation. He’s going to say some stuff and certain things, but people don’t understand maybe what’s the context behind it or where he’s coming from. So, I always say a lot of times athletes, in general, are just in the spotlight where you just hear sound bites or you might see this or hear this, but people don’t really know the kid. And so, until you actually get to know Kyrie, I tell people all the time that if you don’t know someone, you probably shouldn’t speak on him.”
Handy also compared Kyrie Irving, who is set to lose $400,000 per game with the Nets if he remains unvaccinated, to another notoriously private person, Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard.
Kyrie Irving
“He’s very private and his circle is very small and he’s not a guy that really extends himself a lot to people that he doesn’t know. Kind of like Kawhi.”
For sure, the Kyrie Irving vaccine status plot point will be a running storyline for weeks to come.
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