"The only thing that people could do at this point is bring up your past" - Kyrie Irving hits back at critics, believes he can lead an NBA team to a championship

Kyrie Irving, who has had an up-and-down tenure with the Brooklyn Nets, has repeatedly grabbed headlines over the past several years. Just last season, he took serious flak for missing games due to his refusal to take the COVID-19 vaccine.

“Uncle Drew,” who usually posts cryptic messages, took a clear shot at his detractors. In a video posted by Big Facts Entertainment, he said:

“When you’re vulnerable enough to admit that you were wrong in situations. And the only thing that people could do at this point is bring up your past. Because they’re afraid of what you can accomplish in the future. You know you’re doing something right. You know you’re doing something right.”

After the Boston Celtics swept the Nets in the playoffs, Irving admitted that he became a “distraction at times.” There wasn’t a hint, though, of taking responsibility for all of that. It only meant that the Nets tried every way possible to get him to play.

Irving was eventually allowed to play, but not before he was ripped by almost every basketball analyst. ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith minced no words in calling out his betrayal of Kevin Durant, who was left hanging without his close buddy.

It’s not just the bevy of analysts who took note of his past shortcomings. The Nets reportedly refused to give him a long-term extension due to his well-chronicled unreliability and off-court issues.

Brooklyn may even be willing to let Irving walk next summer rather than deal with his antics yet again.

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Kyrie Irving, however, is driven to ignore the past and has vowed to deliver a championship in the future:

“Right now, we’re moving with the intention of learning from mistakes and how we can be better and I like that. That’s why we’re gonna be the best team and why I believe I’m more than capable of leading.

"Not just an NBA team to a championship but my team to the championship. … You just learn, you pick back up and go again.”

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Kyrie Irving hasn’t been able to prove his worth as a franchise player

As the Boston Celtics’ franchise player for two seasons, Kyrie Irving led the team to only one playoff series win. He did not play in the 2018 postseason due to an injury. Without Irving, Boston’s young crew pushed LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers to a Game 7 in the East finals.

Irving’s debut for the Celtics in the playoffs was in 2019. The Celtics swept the Indiana Pacers in the first round before the Milwaukee Bucks handed them a gentleman’s sweep in the next round.

In three years with the Brooklyn Nets, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant have won only one playoff series. Over the past five years, Irving has only moved past the first round of the playoffs twice.

For a team leader who has vowed to win a championship, he will have to play significantly better to prove his worth in the postseason.