The NBA on Monday fined Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving $50,000 for his repeated violation of the league’s code of conduct in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series against the Boston Celtics.
TV cameras caught Irving first shows the middle finger in the TD Garden audience after a successful jump shot late in the third quarter. Video of a spectator in the arena also showed Irving clasping his hands behind his head and pointing two middle fingers at fans midway through the fourth quarter.
“The same energy that they have for me, I will have for them,” Irving said after the game. “And it’s not every fan. I don’t want to attack every Boston fan, but when people start saying ‘p****’ and ‘b****’ and ‘f*** you’ and all that too.” scream , there’s only so much you can take as a competitor. We are expected to be docile, humble and adopt a humble approach. no Fuck it all. It’s the playoffs. That’s what it is.
Irving played two seasons for the Celtics. Ahead of the 2018-19 season, he vowed to re-sign with them in front of a crowd of season ticket holders, only for an arbitrary playoff performance and going to the Brooklyn Nets as free agency in 2019. Returning to TD Garden for a first-round playoff series last year, Irving purposely stomped on the Celtics’ leprechaun logo in midfield to mark a Game 4 win.
Shortly after, a fan threw a water bottle at Irving, earning a lifetime ban from the arena.
Ahead of Sunday’s game, Irving asked the Celtics and their fans for a truce. “I just hope we move on from my Boston era and reflect on some of the highlights I left at TD Garden that they can repeat,” he said.
Fan shots included Irving uttering an expletive to a fan before Game 1. He wiped his feet on the logo again during the pre-game warm-up. Celtics fans responded by booing Irving every time he received the ball during play and chanting “Kyrie sucks” as he attempted free throws in the third quarter.
The story goes on
Game 2 of the Nets Celtics series is scheduled for Wednesday night at 7 p.m. in Boston.
Irving was fined $381,181 by the Nets for every home game he missed this season for failing to meet New York City’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Those penalties totaled $14,103,697 before Mayor Eric Adams lifted restrictions on professional athletes and performers in entertainment venues on March 24. The NBA also fined the Nets $50,000 for allowing Irving to join the team in the locker room on March 13.
In January, Irving was fined $25,000 by the league tell Cavaliers fans who berated him during a game: “Y’all got a championship and motherfuckers are still ungrateful.” He played for the Cavs from 2011 to 2017.
Irving’s fines this season are the second-highest in NBA history behind only Nets teammate Ben Simmons, who was fined nearly $20 million by the Philadelphia 76ers for not complying with his swap request. Simmons reportedly filed a complaint to get his salary back, citing psychological reasons.
Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving wipes his feet on the Boston Celtics’ Leprechaun logo before Game 1 of their first round playoff series on Sunday on TD Garden midcourt. (Jim Davis/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
– – – – – – –
Ben Rohrbach is a senior editor at Yahoo Sports. Do you have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @brohrbach