MY ACCOUNT
LeBron James has spoken out against former team-mate Kyrie Irving, making it clear he does not condone his behaviour.
The Brooklyn Nets point guard has been issued a five-game suspension by his team for posting a documentary featuring anti-semitic material on Twitter, and subsequently falling short of apologising until after he was banned.
Irving has been widely criticised for his actions, with Nike terminating their relationship with the 30-year-old, while his fellow Nets star Kevin Durant believes the entire process has been “unnecessary”.
James, who has long been one of the NBA’s vocal leaders on social issues, is disappointed with what he has seen from his former Cleveland Cavaliers team-mate.
“It’s simple. Me, personally, I don’t condone any hate to any kinds, any race, to Jewish communities, to black communities, to Asian communities. You guys know where I stand,” he said after the Los Angeles Lakers’ loss to the Utah Jazz on Friday.
“I believe what Kyrie did caused some harm to a lot of people. He has since, today, or was it yesterday, apologised. But he caused some harm, and I think it’s unfortunate.
“I don’t stand on the position to harm people when it comes to your voice or your platform or anything.
“So, it doesn’t matter what colour your skin is, how tall you are, what position you’re in. If you are promoting or soliciting or saying harmful things to any community that harm people, then I don’t respect it. I don’t condone it.”
The Nets did not struggle in Irving’s absence on Friday, as they claimed a 128-86 win over the Washington Wizards, overseen by interim coach Jacque Vaughn.
