Getty Boston Celtics guard Kyrie Irving
Kyrie Irving attempted to (sort of) address his recent frustrations both on and off the court on Monday. Specifically, the Boston Celtics star spoke about the media and their current handling of situations throughout the league. But in the process, Irving provided somewhat of a head-scratching comment on the subject.
In an attempt to call out the media for their “outrageous” comments, Irving put his own resume and body of work alongside LeBron James and Kevin Durant. As Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe revealed, the Celtics star pulled no punches with his comments.
“It’s a constant battle b/c the media has just gotten outrageous. He’s the greatest player playing in our game right now but even seeing somebody question Bron’s body of work, my body of work, KD’s body of work. Nobody should question what kind of winners those guys are.” Irving stated, via Washburn’s Twitter.
Unfortunately for the Celtics star, that was a bold statement to make, and fans responded to it by voicing their opinions on Irving putting himself in the mix with LeBron and KD.
Kyrie Irving’s Recent Frustrations Take Center Stage
Following the Celtics’ 118-95 loss to the Toronto Raptors last Tuesday, Irving was asked a number of questions. As Barstool Sports revealed, he kept his head down for most of the session and had very little to say.
Irving was first asked about Celtics coach Brad Stevens saying the team is taking shortcuts and how to fix them, to which Irving responded: “I don’t know, it’s up to Brad.” Then came the topic of Marcus Smart’s comments about the team not playing together to which Irving brushed the topic to the side with a non-answer.
Kyrie Irving is confirmed having fun
Irving has had little interest in interacting with the media as of late, something we’ve also seen from Durant throughout the year.
Kevin Durant’s Approach to Media
As The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami and Anthony Slater revealed in a transcription of a postgame interview with Durant, the Golden State Warriors star went on a rant about the media. Durant was asked about why he hasn’t talked in a while and if it had to do with something on his mind. The All-Star forward responded by stating: “Why do you care? I didn’t feel like talking the last couple days.”
From there, things got even tenser when Durant was asked about if the noise is bothering him “more this year,” as he called out one media member specifically.
“It’s unnecessary. You got a dude, Ethan Strauss, who come in here and give his whole opinion on stuff and make it seem like it’s coming from me. He walk around here, don’t talk to nobody, just walk in here, survey and write something like that.”
…Let us play basketball. That’s all I’m saying. Now when I don’t want to talk to y’all, it’s a problem with me. C’mon man. Grow up. Grow up. Yeah, you, grow up. C’mon, bro. I come in here and go to work every day. I don’t cause no problems. I play the right way. Well, I try to play the right way. I try to be the best player I can be every possession. What’s the problem? What am I doing to y’all?
Whatever the situation is, the frustration has mounted for both Irving and Durant, along with other players throughout the league. Unfortunately, the media attention isn’t going away anytime soon. And as far as Irving’s comments about questioning someone’s body of work, everyone has an opinion, and voicing it is part of the job for many media members.
READ NEXT: Kyrie Irving to Camera Crew: ‘I’m Not Going to Miss Any of This Sh**’