Adam Silver says Nets star should offer ‘unqualified apology’ for his actions
(Bloomberg) — National Basketball Association Commissioner Adam Silver said that Kyrie Irving’s promise to donate $500,000 to groups that fight hate after he shared an antisemitic video on his Twitter account doesn’t go far enough.
Irving, a point guard for the Brooklyn Nets, “made a reckless decision to post a link to a film containing deeply offensive antisemitic material,” Silver said in a statement. “While we appreciate the fact that he agreed to work with the Brooklyn Nets and the Anti-Defamation League to combat antisemitism and other forms of discrimination, I am disappointed that he has not offered an unqualified apology and more specifically denounced the vile and harmful content contained in the film he chose to publicize.”
Silver said that he and Irving would be meeting in-person next week.
Silver’s comments come after Irving and the Nets said on Wednesday they would each donate $500,000 to “causes and organizations that eradicate hate and intolerance in our communities.”
“I am aware of the negative impact of my post towards the Jewish community and I take responsibility,” Irving said. “I do not believe everything said in the documentary was true or reflects my morals and principles.”
Irving defended his post about the documentary in a postgame press conference on Oct. 29. The post was later deleted from his account.
Read More: Brooklyn Nets Fire Steve Nash as Team Flops, Irving Stirs Uproar
Anti-Defamation League Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Greenblatt in the same joint statement said intervening is paramount. “At a time when antisemitism has reached historic levels, we know the best way to fight the oldest hatred is to both confront it head-on and also to change hearts and minds,” he said.
Amar’e Stoudemire, who served for two seasons as an assistant coach with the Nets, predicted on Wednesday that anything short of a direct apology would cause further concern from the NBA.
“You have to give an apology because if you’re going to promote a documentary that has false allegations inside of it, and you may not understand that these allegations that’s inside the documentary are false, OK you made a mistake, right? So apologize for it,” he said.
Billionaire Joe Tsai, the owner of the Nets, also reprimanded Irving last week, saying he was disappointed in the player and that “this is bigger than basketball.”
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2022 Bloomberg L.P.
