ICYMI: TD Garden erupts with chants of "Kyrie Sucks" in 4th quarter as Boston Celtics get better of Brooklyn Nets
Boston Celtics fans aren't willing to forgive Kyrie Irving. This after the 29-year-old superstar point guard left the Celtics in the 2019 offseason to join the Brooklyn Nets. Irving played just two seasons with the Celtics after being traded to Boston in the 2017 offseason.
Unreal ☘️ https://t.co/RXALGyWAYT
The latest chapter of the Celtics fans expressing their displeasure towards Irving came in the fourth quarter of the keenly-contested game played between Brooklyn and Boston on Sunday. The Celtics edged the Nets 126-120 on the back of a season-high 54-point performance by Jayson Tatum in the matchup. But fans at the TD Garden let Kyrie Irving know that he wasn't welcome on the Celtics home floor. They chanted "Kyrie Sucks" with great passion as the game entered its final minute and Jaylen Brown went to the charity stripe to make a couple of pair throws. You can see the entire segment here:
“Kyrie Sucks” chants are LOUD https://t.co/X9pwDULdrD
"It's like the scorned girlfriend, asking for an explanation" - Kyrie Irving has amusing response to getting booed by Boston Celtics fans
Although the Brooklyn Nets lost a close contest to the Boston Celtics, Kyrie Irving struggled for much of the game. The seven-time All-Star managed only 19 points on 8-of-18 shooting (44.4%) and turned the ball over three times for the Nets. When asked how he felt about the crowd booing him in Boston, Irving responded:
"I know it's going to be like that for the rest of my career, coming in here. It's like the scorned girlfriend - just wants an explanation on why I left but still hoping for a text back. I'm just like, 'Yeah, it's fun while it lasted.' I think that's the relationship and that makes me fine, but the reality is I'm just grateful for my time here in Boston. Everybody in the front office, everybody in that locker room treated me well."
Irving also touched upon the mutual respect he shares with a lot of the Boston Celtics players. He commented:
"To see the growth of a lot of guys that I played with on this team and seeing this core group back together - Marcus Smart, Al Horford, JB [Jaylen Brown], JT [Jayson Tatum], and then they added Derrick White, few other guys - Rob Williams maturing. I was with these guys when they were cubs. JT just got drafted, JB was in his second year. I just have mutual respect there."
He added:
"Coming back in this environment, we know what it is. I just got to lock in on the mission. Stay focussed and not try to have too many conversations with the fans on the side when they call me out with my name."
"I know it's going to be like that for the rest of my career, coming in here. It's like the scorned girlfriend - wants an explanation on why I left but still hoping for a text back. I'm just like, 'it's fun while it lasted.'"
- Kyrie Irving on his relationship with Celtics fans https://t.co/5XQ6vfDp9d