NBA Commissioner Adam Silver Claims Kyrie Irving Is Not Anti-Semitic After Sit-Down With Troubled Star
deadline.comNBA Commissioner Adam Silver is not saying troubled Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving is anti-semitic. In an interview Thursday with the New York Times, Silver talked briefly about his meeting with Irving this week at the NBA’s office in Manhattan.
The meeting followed a series of events where Irving promoted a film that contained anti-semitic tropes, then refused to apologize for that in a meaningful way.
Irving is now suspended and has to meet six steps of contrition before he can be reinstated. “We had a direct and candid conversation,” Silver said.“He’s someone I’ve known for a decade, and I’ve never heard an anti-semitic word from him or, frankly, hate directed at any group.” But Silver added, “Whether or not he is anti-semitic is not relevant to the damage caused by the posting of hateful content.” Silver talked to The Times after speaking at a conference in Washington, his first public appearance since the Irving incident started.
He declined to elaborate on the discussion with Irving, citing an agreement to keep their talk private. The commissioner did say at the conference that Amazon bore some responsibility for hosting the film on its platform. “I think Amazon has to make decisions as well,” Silver said.
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