Kyrie Irving has caught strays on several occasions from Neil deGrasse Tyson following the NBA star’s flat-earth take. One such instance took place three years ago when the astrophysicist joined Rich Eisen on The Rich Eisen Show. The 65-year-old called out the Dallas Mavericks guard on live television while mockingly sharing life advice for him.
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Upon the host asking Tyson about his thoughts on Irving believing that the earth was flat, he commented, “That’s why he is a basketball player… In a free country, you can think that the earth is flat, there’s plenty of jobs for you. Just stay away from NASA and any other place where objective reality matters and so he plays basketball. I’m cool with that,”.
Eisen failed to contain his laughter upon listening to the suggestion from Tyson as he highlighted, “Neil deGrasse Tyson just told Kyrie Irving to stick to sports”. Following this, the science communicator jokingly issued a warning to the 2016 NBA champion, stating, “Whatever you do just stay away from NASA because that would be a disaster”.
The entire situation sparked from the Mavs guard’s remarks in 2017. During an episode of ‘Road Trippin‘, the Australian-born expressed his beliefs openly for the first time before further confirming them during All-Star weekend. “I think people should do their own research,” the 8x All-Star declared on that occasion, standing firm on his stance.
Irving’s faith in his statements reflected his self-belief as he let his intuitions drive him throughout his career. Despite its apparent impact on his basketball journey, this argumentation remained inapplicable in the field of objective reality. Tyson aimed to precisely point that out as this was not the only time he called out the 31-year-old.
That said, despite all the faith he had in his statement at the time, there is ample proof saying that the Earth is not in fact flat. So, while DeGrasse Tyson’s words may sound harsh, it’s likely best if Irving sticks to them.
How Neil deGrasse Tyson countered the belief of Kyrie Irving over the years
Soon after the point guard’s statements became public knowledge, the scientist let his feelings known to him. Six years ago, Tyson maintained a nearly similar tone as he mocked the 6ft 2″ star. He told TMZ Sports, “If he wants to think the earth is flat, go right ahead as long as he continues to play basketball and not become head of any space agency”.
Despite the teasing and differences in opinions, Tyson recently shed light on respecting the boundaries of the NBA player. “You can think earth is flat and there are many jobs you can still have in society. One of them is in the NBA. I’m not gonna chase him down. I would love to have a conversation with him but I’m not gonna publicly denounce him,” he declared on VladTV.
Thus, the scientist has interestingly opened the door to what would undoubtedly be a deeply interesting conversation. However, whether it has taken place, or if it ever will for that matter, remains unknown.
