Dallas Mavericks superstar guard Kyrie Irving considers Karl-Anthony Towns his “brother” and won’t stand for all the slander directed at the Knicks star.
Through a Twitch stream on Jun 10, Irving warned Knicks fans — and other online fans in general — to stop poking fun at Towns.
“Y’all gotta stop making fun of my brother KAT,” he said. “I’m done with y’all… It’s over for that, it’s a [expletive] wrap. I’m letting y’all know, if you repost that s— again or meme him up, I’m attacking you. Not like that physically in GTA, but I’m attacking you.”
“Y’all got to leave KAT alone, okay?” he continued. “Y’all don’t know what it’s like to grow up in Jersey, and have all of these cultures that you’re a part of, trust me on that.”
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Irving then pointed out that Towns comes from a diverse background.
“He’s Dominican, he’s Black, he grew up in a certain area in Jersey, just like me. You’ve gotta survive out here and there are a lot of demographics of people. I don’t agree with him all the time when he changes his tone while talking [laughing].
“On a serious note, he’s a man, he’s my brother, and I protect him, all the time.”
The widespread trolling towards Towns stems from his on-court mannerisms and his various accents, propelling countless internet memes and jokes. The trolling only intensified after the Knicks lost to the Pacers in the NBA playoffs, with many fans pointing fingers at Towns for his lackluster defense.
Furthermore, former NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas poked fun of Towns’ physical dimensions on his “Gil’s Arena” podcast.
(🎥 @GilsArenaShow / h/t @EvInFour)
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“He’s built like a female,” Arenas said of Towns. “He’s built like a girl. He has girl hips. He’s like a full WNBA player.”
Arenas subsequently apologized to Towns, but maintained that the Knicks star has unusual physical proportions, which impede his ability to move his feet laterally.
Irving’s Twitch stream comes at a time when he’s recovering from an ACL tear, which prematurely ended his 2024-25 NBA season.
The 9-time All-Star underwent successful surgery on April 16 to fix the ACL tear, and is expected to make a full recovery. According to ESPN, there is optimism that Irving could be cleared for basketball duties as early as January 2026, which would allow the Mavericks to make a potential push for an NBA championship.
Many analysts believe a healthy Mavericks team, with Irving, Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson leading the charge, could have been title contenders in 2024-25. The Mavericks are likely to be even more of a threat in 2025-26 with the potential addition of Cooper Flagg, the projected No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
The 33-year-old Irving averaged 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists in the 2024-25 season. He has a $43 million player option for the 2025-26 season, which he’s expected to opt in. Dallas is widely expected to sign him to a new longterm deal.
Kyrie Irving Blasts Knicks Fans for Poking Fun at His ‘Brother’