With Irving back, stars could all be aligned for Nets
Kyrie Irving rested his chin on his arms folded in front of him, looking worn down by his fight to balance his commitment to his team and his community.
He wants to help the Nets. He also wants to support the underserved.
“If you don’t create that distinction, then it’s easy to feel the weight of the world while you’re going out there and playing,” Irving said Tuesday.
Such a weight, the Brooklyn star said, that he “just needed a pause.”
Irving returned to practice with the team and could play tonight in Cleveland. He has missed the past seven games — five while away during a leave of absence and two more while regaining his conditioning after he was eligible to return.
He didn’t give a clear reason for his absence while speaking during a Zoom interview, telling reporters he had a lot of personal things going on.
“I’m a hometown kid so things hit a little different when family and personal stuff are going on, and that’s up to me to handle that as a man,” Irving said. “But yeah, I just take full accountability for my absence with the guys and just had a conversation with each one of them and we move on.”
He apologized to Nets fans, saying he understood their feelings because he grew up one of them in New Jersey, when the team was based there. But Irving, who has donated millions to causes important to him and confirmed working with a group that bought a home for George Floyd’s family, also made clear that his decisions are based on more than just basketball.
“I want to make changes daily,” Irving said. “There are so many oppressed communities, so many things going on that are just bigger than a ball going in the rim.”
Irving’s absence began Jan. 7, the day after the deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol. He was fined $50,000 for violating the NBA’s health and safety protocols after he was seen in a video posted on social media during his absence at an indoor family party while not wearing a mask. He also lost nearly $900,000 of his $33.5 million salary because two of the games he missed were during a mandated quarantine period.
Irving said he was happy to be back with the team, which acquired James Harden during his absence.
BLAZERS’ MCCOLLUM HAS FRACTURE IN LEFT FOOT >> In the midst of one of his best seasons, Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum has suffered a hairline fracture in his left foot. McCollum will wear a walking boot and be evaluated in four weeks.
McCollum was averaging a career-best 26.7 points, as well as five assists, per game when he was injured Saturday during a game against the Atlanta Hawks.
LEVERT, PACERS AWAIT TEST RESULTS >> Caris LeVert said he was awaiting additional test results on a small mass in his left kidney before establishing a treatment plan or a timeline for his Indiana Pacers debut.
Team doctors found the growth during a routine post-trade physical late last week. LeVert said he doesn’t yet know if the mass is cancerous.
Indiana acquired LeVert as part of a four-team, blockbuster trade that sent All-Star James Harden from Houston to Brooklyn. The Rockets sent the 6-foot-6 guard to the Pacers in exchange for Victor Oladipo.
LeVert, who hadn’t missed any games with the Nets this season prior to the trade, said he never felt any lower back pain.
Indiana also lost center Myles Turner, the league leader in blocks, with a fractured right hand last weekend. The team issued a statement saying the injury won’t require surgery and listed Turner as day to day; Bjorkgren said Turner practiced Tuesday.