Over the last few months, Stephen A. Smith has been particularly hard on Kyrie Irving due to his stance on the vaccine against COVID-19. Kyrie is currently refusing to get vaccinated, and Smith has had very little patience for this. While Smith respects Kyrie's decision, he has also leveled all types of slander that has ultimately rubbed fans the wrong way.
Recently, however, Smith found himself rushing to Kyrie's defense as the Nets superstar was heckled by fans in Cleveland. Kyrie ended up calling the fans ungrateful, and as you can see in the clip below, it was a pretty bizarre interaction given what Kyrie did in the city.
This ultimately prompted a response from Stephen A., who noted that it was Kyrie who sealed the deal in that Game 7 back in 2016. With that being said, Cavs fans should be a bit more appreciative of one of the game's most exciting point guards.
"I completely side with KYRIE on this one. Sure, @KingJames has to get the most credit, but KYRIE avg 27 in that finals and hit the dagger to secure the title," Smith wrote. "Fair is Fair. @cavs don’t win title w/o KYRIE. Cleveland — of all places — should appreciate him most of all."
Kyrie is an easy target for the kind of heckling seen above, so it's safe to say it probably won't stop this season. Regardless, Kyrie is playing spirited basketball, and if he helps the Nets win a title, nothing else will matter.