Kyrie Irving's scandals: A list of Uncle Drew’s scandals since he joined the NBA

NBA Superstar "Uncle Drew" is not a stranger to controversy. From harassment to anti-Semitism, are these scandals overshadowing Kyrie Irving's accomplishments? Find out more about Kyrie Irving's scandals, controversies, and conspiracies here.

Is Kyrie right, is he wrong, or is he the most misunderstood man today? Let us find out. Here is a list of Uncle Drew's latest scandals and responses to them.

Kyrie's anti-Semitic film tweet

Kyrie Irving's anti-Semitic movie post has made him one of the most talked about celebrities right now. The 2014 USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year is currently facing backlash for a tweet made on the 27th of October, 2022.

Why did the Brooklyn Nets suspend Kyrie Irving?

The Net suspended the seven-time NBA All-star for up to 5 games following public uproar over the tweet. Although Brooklyn Nets owner Joseph C. Tsai condemned Irving's actions on the 29th of October, he later made the following remarks in a Twitter post after a dinner meeting with Kyrie and his wife, Marlene Wilkerson.

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Why is Nike suspending Kyrie?

Since then, Kyrie Irving’s latest comments have caused him to lose more than just fans. One of his biggest basketball sponsors, Nike, broke their relationship with Kyrie and suspended the upcoming Kyrie 8 shoe launch.

What did Kyrie Irving say?

Kyrie Irving’s tweet linked a 2018 film depicting the Holocaust as a lie, alleging that the Jewish people have been lying about their origins, among other anti-Semitic tropes. According to a report by Rollingstone, the views promoted in the film allegedly mirrors the ideas and perceptions held by the Black Hebrew Israelite Movement.

Following the backlash, Kyrie posted an apology that has been widely criticized. In a statement, part of the apology read,

“I oppose all forms of hatred and oppression and stand strong with communities that are marginalized and impacted every day. I am aware of the negative impact of my post toward the Jewish community and I take responsibility. I do not believe everything said in the documentary was true or reflects my morals and principles. I am a human being learning from all walks of life and I intend to do so with an open mind and willingness to listen. So from my family and I, we meant no harm to any one group, race or religion of people, and wish to only be a beacon of truth and light.”

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What happened with Kyrie Irving and the Celtics fans?

Kyrie Irving played for the Celtics between 2017 and 2019. However, since then, he has had a long-standing conflict with the Celtics fans over various issues.

Firstly, the C's expected a longer stay for Irving but were surprised after he made a statement announcing his desire to re-sign with his old team, the Brooklyn Nets. Secondly, the fans were further irked when Irving appeared to stomp on Lucky, the leprechaun on the Celtics logo, after the Nets secured a 141-126 victory at the TD Garden.

Although Kyrie had gotten used to the jeering, booing, and insults hurled at him, the environment around Celtics fans described as hostile, became worse during Game 1. In reaction to the fans, he made obscene gestures and used profane language to address them, which drew a hefty punishment from the NBA. In April, the Nets guard was fined $50,000 by the NBA for flipping off Boston Celtics fans twice during the game.

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The Covid 19 vaccine controversy

At the height of the Covid 19 pandemic, New York State issued a directive requiring everyone to vaccinate against the disease. However, Kyrie opted not to take the vaccine missing out on almost all home games for the Nets during that season.

Although he faced excessive backlash for his decision, Irving stood by his decision. He later spoke to the media, revealing his decision's effects on his contract and career. He said,

"I didn't appreciate how me being unvaccinated came to be a stigma within my career that I don't want to play, or that I'm willing to give up everything to be a voice for the voiceless. I gave up four years, 100-and-something million deciding to be unvaccinated and that was the decision. There's a level of uncertainty of your future, whether you're going to be in this league, whether you're going to be on this team. So I had to deal with that real-life circumstance of losing my job for this decision."

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The Alex Jones controversy

Alex Jones is a conspiracy theorist who spreads his ideas on the Infowars podcast. One of his most polarizing theories involved the unfortunate elementary school shooting that occurred in 2012 at Sandy Hook elementary school. Jones's theory suggested that the shooting did not occur and was rather staged by the government.

In September 2022, Irving posted Jones's 2002 clip, captioned,

“There is a tyrannical organization calling itself the New World Order…by releasing diseases and viruses and plagues upon us, we then basically get shoved into their system”.

The flat earth controversy

In February 2017, Uncle Drew's sentiments on the Road Trippin podcast landed him in trouble with the education system. Although the theory that the earth is flat has been debunked, Mr. 4th Quarter still stands by it. According to media reports, in March of the same year, he added that after doing his research, he concluded that there was no real photo of the earth.

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Football

During the 2017 Forbes Under 30 Summit, he addressed the sentiments that had attracted widespread public attention and apologized to educators. He said,

“To all the science teachers, everybody coming up to me like, `You know I’ve got to reteach my whole curriculum?’ I’m sorry. I apologize. I apologize.”

Kyrie is undoubtedly one of the best NBA basketball players right now. However, the most recent of Kyrie Irving's scandals and controversies threaten to destroy his hard work and decade-long career.

READ ALSO: NBA players who died on the court; Ballers who passed away doing what they love

Sportsbrief.com recently published an article highlighting the health challenges facing NBA players. Several high-profile NBA players have died over the years from natural causes. However, some of the players tragically passed away too soon, and what's more, they died while playing on the basketball court.

Click on the link above to find out why and how young and fit players full of life have dropped dead while playing the sport they love.

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