“Best decision of my career” - Kyrie Irving calls out media’s role in Nets’ exit

Kyrie Irving is set to face his former team, the Brooklyn Nets, in the Dallas Mavericks' second regular season game. With most fans blaming the eight-time NBA All-Star for the destruction of the Nets' championship dreams, Irving feels that he left the organization on a good note.

He instead points to the media for the narratives, which he mentioned to reporters after practice:

“I was never on bad terms with the organization. I just think there was a lot of chaos and noise, as usual, from the media. I’m not going to blame you guys or anything, but nobody really knew what was going on behind the scenes.

"But for me, it was the best decision of my career to ask for a trade. I knew I needed peace of mind.”

The 2012 NBA Rookie of the Year feels that he was the easiest guy to point to on what was wrong with the Nets and suggested there was more to the situation than meets the eye:

“I had a media interview and I said there was some disrespectful things going on behind the scenes — and that happens in every organization as an employee, so it’s not out of the ordinary to come out and communicate that — but again, when it’s me, it’s a fire starter.

"Everyone loves to use my name to build up whatever credibility they need. And at the end of the day, I don’t have a problem with that.”

Last season, Kyrie Irving played 40 games for the Brooklyn Nets before being traded to the Dallas Mavericks. In that time, the former NBA champion registered 27.1 points, 5.3 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game.

Kyrie Irving sounds off on the criticisms he had with the Brooklyn Nets

Kyrie Irving had a bumpy ride at the Brooklyn Nets. He missed games due to his COVID-19 vaccination stance and was suspended for refusing to apologize for promoting an anti-Semitic film.

Being in the headlines for non-basketball-related reasons, Irving is tired of being in the spotlight:

“I think my criticism is fair, as long as you keep it on the court and judge me off the success of our team and don’t try to dig too deep into who I am as a person.

"I don’t show who I am as a person in this business, because it’s always constant, constant, constant eyewitness views, just random things that I don’t necessarily agree [with] that’s being written about me."

The Dallas Mavericks were able to secure their first win of the 2023-24 season against the San Antonio Spurs with Kyrie Irving contributing 22 points, six assists, two rebounds and one steal. They look to keep their record unblemished as they battle the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, October 27.