"I never heard that from Kyrie Irving" - Boston Celtics GM Danny Ainge dismisses Brooklyn Nets star's concerns of hostile fan reaction in Game 3
Kyrie Irving will return to TD Garden on Friday to face his former team, the Boston Celtics, in the 2021 NBA Playoffs. It will be the first post-season game he will be playing at the venue since his departure from the franchise.
Kyrie's current team, the Brooklyn Nets, currently lead the C's 2-0 in their first-round series and will be looking to advance to the next round by winning the next two on the road.
Speaking about the hostile reception he might have to face on his return, Kyrie Irving recently said that he expects it to be a heated environment for him. He also said that he hopes the home crowd will refrain from any kind of "racism" or "belligerence" and restrict their comments about basketball only.
Here's what Kyrie Irving had to say:
"It’s not my first time being an opponent in Boston. So, I am just looking forward to competing with my teammates and hopefully, we can just keep it strictly basketball. There’s no belligerence or racism going on — subtle racism — people yelling s–t from the crowd, but even if it is, it’s part of the nature of the game and we’re just going to focus on what we can control."
There have been multiple controversial moments so far between fans and players in the 2021 NBA Playoffs of late. Only time will tell how the Boston Celtics fans will treat Kyrie Irving upon his return and if there is further objectionable misconduct displayed by NBA fans.
Boston Celtics GM Danny Ainge believes the fans will take Kyrie Irving's statements seriously
Boston Celtics GM Danny Ainge seemed confident that the fans wouldn't be involved in any kind of objectionable behavior towards Kyrie Irving. He also mentioned that neither Kyrie nor any other player has ever complained about their fans. Here's what the Boston Celtics GM said after making an appearance on the 'Toucher and Rich Show':
"I think that we take those kind of things seriously. I never heard any of that, from any player that I’ve ever played with in my 26 years in Boston. I never heard that before from Kyrie and I talked to him quite a bit."
Kyrie Irving has been in terrific form in the two games that the teams have played so far at Barclays Center. He averaged 22 points and six rebounds across those two games on 53% field goal shooting.
He will be the key to his team delivering two consecutive wins on the road if they are to sweep the Boston Celtics. However, it remains to be seen how Irving will react to the pressure of playing at TD Garden.