"You wanna call out somebody, call out your teammate" - Mike Wilbon goes off at Kevin Durant suggesting that Kyrie Irving is getting wronged by NYC mayor Eric Adams
Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets hosted the New York Knicks on Sunday night, with the Nets winning 110-107. Kyrie Irving showed up to the game as a spectator, but could not suit up for the Nets, owing to the New York City mandate put in place by the mayor – Eric Adams.
The absurdity of allowing Kyrie Irving literally meters away from the court and not on the court has been questioned several times, with no real resolve. In a post-game interview, after dropping 53 points on the Knicks, Kevin Durant did not hold back when asked for his opinion.
Durant called out the NYC mayor, saying he just wants to flex his authority while looking for attention. Michael Wilbon took offense to Durant’s comments, discussing it on “NBA On Fire”, by saying:
“Kevin Durant is too aware and too plugged in to say something that impertinent. What’s the point of that? – Want some attention? You want to call out somebody, call out your teammate. Tell him to get a shot.”
Kyrie Irving has missed the first 35 games of the season due to his holdout on getting vaccinated. He only returned to the league when the Nets’ suffered from a depleted roster, as players kept going in and out of the league’s health and safety protocols.
Kevin Durant on Kyrie Irving not being able to play at home:
"We're all confused. Pretty much everybody in the world is confused at this point. Early on in the season, people didn't understand what was going on but now, it just looks stupid. Eric, you gotta figure this out." https://t.co/t8aBEBEZEA
However, with the mandate in New York not allowing unvaccinated players at Barclays Center or Madison Square Garden, Kyrie Irving was limited to a part-time role. Since his return, he has played 18 games, averaging 25.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 5.4 assists – making his services even more crucial for the eighth-placed Nets.
Wilbon then went on to call out Durant and the other Nets for not standing up to Kyrie Irving by saying:
“I mean all these guys want to be so irresponsible and not accountable enough to look at this dude and tell him ‘You want to play with us, put a shot in your arm.’”
“The vaccine is not about attention. People died, hundreds of thousands of them, from this virus. And you think the mayor of New York needs to attend to a basketball team’s needs?”
Kyrie Irving’s part-time situation could be costly for Kevin Durant and the Nets in the playoffs
The Brooklyn Nets (35-33) are eighth in the East with just fifteen games left to try and get out of the Play-In tournament bracket. Kyrie Irving will be eligible to play in only four of those games, and he could miss the Play-In tournament too.
Kyrie has arrived.
(via @Alex__Schiffer) https://t.co/O99m8wSkL5
However, whether they make it by being in the top six of the Eastern Conference or via the Play-In tournament, having Irving for only half of the game could affect the team’s rhythm and chemistry. The playoffs are a completely different atmosphere, where consistency becomes key.
Furthermore, things could get icky if the Brooklyn Nets face-off against the Toronto Raptors in a playoff series, leaving Irving ineligible to play in any of the games – as per current conditions. Steve Nash’s only respite in such situations is Kevin Durant, who has come back healthy and is already scoring efficiently.