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“Play your media games with somebody else bro; puppeteers!”: Kyrie Irving goes off on a reporter for questioning his vaccination status following Nets loss to the Heat

Samir Mehdi
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"I was wondering at home what my future was going to look like": Kyrie Irving provides an insight into his tumultuous season with the Brooklyn Nets

Kyrie Irving tells Nick Friedell to not bring his personal emotions to the Nets postgame presser, calling the media puppeteers. 

The Brooklyn Nets were 21-8 when they announced they would be bringing Kyrie Irving back for road games. Ever since then. They have gone 8-19 and have posted a worse winning percentage than the OKC Thunder in that stretch. 

This of course, isn’t to say that Kyrie is directly responsible for this as he most certainly isn’t. James Harden was clearly not happy with the way the season was going, with Irving’s vaccination status up in the air and Kevin Durant being out for injury; team chemistry was off by a mile.

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Irving unfortunately, isn’t doing much to help boost team morale and chemistry as he’s not available for games at the Barclays Center due to him being unvaccinated. On top of that, he’s constantly had to talk about this same subject in every other postgame presser of his. 

Last night’s press con was no different as Kyrie Irving got chippy with Nick Friedell when asked about whether or not he feels any guilt for not being able to play the full season. 

Kyrie Irving on his vaccination status as of today. 

Kyrie Irving is no closer to getting vaccinated against COVID-19 now than he was 6 months ago. It was reported that he would consider it if a plant-based shot was released but it’s not certain as to how true this is.

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Last night’s postgame presser saw Irving have to talk about getting the vaccine once again as Nick Friedell asked him if he felt any guilt for not being able to suit up for home games. This prompted KAI to say: 

“Don’t bring your personal emotions in here. C’mon now, c’mon now, puppeteers! We’re back here. Play your media games with somebody else bro please. I understand that there’s a lot going on in the world and I’m here as a human being just like you bruh. Please respect my boundaries man, that’s all I’m asking.” 

Kyrie Irving has a history of jarring with the media as he’s called guys like Nick Wright and Stephen A. Smith ‘puppets’ before. It’s safe to say that the 2016 champ is looking merely to hoop and go home with no questions asked in between. 

About the author

Samir Mehdi

Samir Mehdi

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Samir Mehdi is a senior strategist for the NBA division at The Sportsrush. Ever since he was 13 years old, he’s been obsessed with the game of basketball. From watching Kobe Bryant’s highlights on YouTube to now, analyzing and breaking down every single game on League Pass, Samir’s passion for the game is unwavering. He's a complete basketball junkie who not only breaks down current games but also keenly watches ones from the 60s’ and 70s’ while also reading comprehensive books on the history of the league. Samir’s life revolves around basketball and he hopes that shows in his work. Aside from work, he loves to spend time in the gym and with his friends at social gatherings.

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