Brooklyn Nets' All Star point guard Kyrie Irving opened up about Jackie MacMullan's recent ESPN story on Wednesday night, and he made it clear how little he cares about what that company, or anyone else, has to say about his life. Says Irving, "I’m going to keep on smiling and doing me.”
MacMullan's story about Irving and the Nets mentioned how the organization has had concerns about his sporadic "mood swings," which included a moment in China that left them "scratching their heads as to what precipitated it." Speaking with the media about that report after Wednesday's loss to the Indiana Pacers, Irving explained, “Human beings have mood swings... It’s OK to be human.”
His comments (H/T Nets Daily):
“Human beings have mood swings. You go home and you’re not happy with things or mad about something, that’s a mood swing. It’s OK to be human,” Irving said. “I don’t have to be perfect for anyone here, nor do I have to be perfect for the public so I’m not here to dispel any perception. I’m just here to be myself.”
“That’s the world we live in. … That’s what goes back to the importance of self-love. Who cares what ESPN says or anybody said, I love myself, I love my family, I love my friends, I love playing basketball,” Irving added. “Why would you ever care about that? I think I fell victim to that in my past, worrying about things that I can’t control.
“History has shown you can be the best teammate ever, somebody is still going to say something negative about what you’re doing or your life. That can’t be the importance: If you allow that to infiltrate your life … you’re going to be right where they want you to be emotionally. … I expect people to say things like that and I’m going to keep on smiling and doing me.”
Irving finished with a team-high 28 points to go along with seven rebounds and six assists, but it wasn't enough to propel the Nets to victory over the Pacers. Up next for the Nets (1-3) is a home game against James Harden, Russell Westbrook and the Houston Rockets (3-1) on Friday night. That game, airing on ESPN, is scheduled to tip at 7:00pm ET.