Photo: Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty
Brooklyn Nets point guardKyrie Irvinghas apologized to a fan he mistook for a heckler during Wednesday’s game against the New York Knicks.
However, the man he spoke to was not the person that made the comment.
Irving acknowledged his mistake during his postgame press conference, noting that the fan that did heckle him “wanted a reaction” and “got one.”
“I think I tapped the wrong person,” he confessed, viaClutchPoints. “So I apologize to the random guy that I tapped.”
The seven-time All-Star described the situation as “East Coast basketball at its finest,” which he said is simply “people just yelling random s— from the crowd.”
“I was just upset with our performance,” Irving said, adding, “I’ve dealt with, kind of this East Coast type of attitude in games since I was 7 [or] 8 years old, so I’ve been in the trenches.”
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This is not the first encounter this season between Irving and a fan. In January, the NBAfined Irving $25,000"for directing obscene language toward a fan" during the Nets' loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
In the viral clip, a Cavaliers fan sitting courtside at the Jan. 17 game could be heard heckling Irving before the Nets star responded with, “Got y’all a championship and motherf—— still ungrateful.“Irving has only played in 27 game this season after refusing to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
The point guard was only permitted to compete during the team’s away games upon his return to the team until New York City Mayor Eric Adams' recent decision to lift the private sector coronavirus vaccine mandate for performers and athletes.
source: people.com
