Dallas Mavericks point guard Kyrie Irving posted a plea to his 19 million followers on Instagram, asking fans to stop talking about him and his upcoming free agency this summer.
Before ending his IG live, Irving told his fans, “Stop mentioning me on Twitter. All your fan bases. Stop calling me now, please. It’s still the…Conference Final…Could you please get the fuck out of here.”
“Please, I’m just at peace with my family. You all have people at my dinner table discussing my plans for free desks. Stop that, you all think it’s funny, but please stop that.’
“Like, I actually like to have peace of mind when I’m at the crib. I see all your @s, I see all your mentions, okay. I said it, I see everything… I get it, I get it. I’m just as excited as you are. But you have to chill.’
Irving went on to say that he feels the love of fans and loves them equally, before then asking them not to call him “please” again for the next few months until he makes his decision.
*WARNING WRONG LANGUAGE*
Kyrie Irving says not to believe certain free agent rumors
¿If they talk about potential teams on my behalf, can you please stop paying attention to that.¿
(u/t @LeagueAlerts )
— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) May 24, 2023
Kyrie Irving made a plea to fans to please stop mentioning his free agency and tag him
Rumors of Irving’s free agency circulated after he sat court at the Lakers game
Kyrie Irving says not to believe certain free agent rumors
¿If they talk about potential teams on my behalf, can you please stop paying attention to that.¿
(u/t @LeagueAlerts )
— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) May 24, 2023
Debate over Irving’s free agency has heated up in recent days after Irving sat in court in Los Angeles watching the Lakers get swept by the Denver Nuggets.
Irving also said he is “in no rush” to make a decision as he discusses his free agency.
“I’m a free agent this summer, but I’m in no hurry to make a decision,” Irving said.
“The speculation around my name from all these individuals that come on TV and have these personalities… When they talk about my name and they talk about potential teams I’m going to ask respectfully I’m asking you to please stop paying attention to that . I’m in no hurry to make a decision.”
It should also be noted that Irving had initially stated that he would remain with the Celtics and Nets on a long-term basis, before leaving Boston and Brooklyn, respectively.
Irving was acquired by the Mavericks at the trade deadline and the team can re-sign him for a maximum deal of $272 million over five years, while the biggest deal Irving can sign with another team would be a four-year contract worth nearly $ 202 million.
According to Bleacher Report, the Mavericks were under the impression that Irving would stay in Dallas for more than half of the season after the trade.
“I heard they had a handshake deal before the trade [with the Nets],” said a source Eric Pincus. “And Kyrie wouldn’t have said yes to anything less than the maximum.”
If Irving were to leave Dallas for a reunion with LeBron James, both parties would have to work out a sign-and-trade to make sure L.A. Irving fits under the salary cap.
During his live stream, Irving also took a moment to take pictures of the media for “mixing sports with politics” and spreading rumors about him.
“The speculation around my name from all these individuals who come on TV and have these personalities, all these people who have these platforms,” Irving said.
“And I’m talking about the TV personalities, the sports people who try to mix sports with politics and lifestyle and things like that.”
“If they’re talking about my name and they’re talking about potential teams I’m going to, can you please stop that?”
He also called out the media, indirectly ESPN’s Stephan A Smith for “mixing sports and politics”
While he didn’t name any specific media members, it’s easy to understand that his comments were largely directed at ESPN’s Stephen A Smith.
Smith recently admitted that he had personal issues with Irving, although many fans who watch ESPN and First Take regularly have long noticed that Smith clearly dislikes Irving.
In recent years, noted analyst has routinely criticized Irving for his refusal to get vaccinated, which forced him to leave both Boston and Brooklyn, and for the many conspiracy theories repeated by the former Duke star. Smith even admitted to having a personal, albeit unspecified, problem with Irving.
Fans and other analysts like ESPN’s Jay Williams have attacked Smith for his criticism of Irving, but the longtime analyst has offered no apology.