Source: Cindy Ord / Getty
When it comes to redemption tours in the NBA, Kyrie Irving‘s may rank amongst the best.
He received hate from Cleveland Cavaliers fans, Boston Celtics fans and Brooklyn Nets fans, but his two-season stint with the Dallas Mavericks has allowed him to find his footing.
He’s teamed up with Slovenian star Luka Doncic and has matured enough to know the game better, but he still has the quick footwork and dribbling maneuvers that many players lose in their early 30s.
That’s all been a recipe for success for Irving, and it even led to one of his biggest detractors to apologize: Stephen A. Smith.
It’s all the result of Smith talking to fellow Queens, New York, native and Inside The NBA’s Kenny Smith. Smith explained why he should ease up on him and noted that the three of them have some of the same mentors.
So, in dramatic fashion, Smith took to YouTube and uploaded a 10-minute video entitled “Kyrie, I Apologize.”
”I feel the way that I feel because I pride myself in being man enough to acknowledge when I’m wrong. If I think I’m wrong because, I think it’s rare, but I was wrong, and for Kenny Smith to tell me that, it hit home in a big way because we go back more than 30 years.”
ESPN’s pundit has staunchly opposed Irving’s behavior, including posting an antisemitic movie on social media, peddling anti-vax ideas, demanding trades, stomping on the Boston Celtic logo Lucky’s face at center court in the TD Garden, and more.
“I can count on two fingers how many times he’s thought I was wrong, and so his friendship, his brotherhood, means a lot to me. But it also reminded me of the brotherhood of all of those that mentored me and have been there for Kyrie,” Smith said.
Smith went on to list Irving’s missteps, including losing his deal with Nike but thinks that Irving’s grown up since his mistakes and has shown it in his on-court play and leadership in the Dallas Mavericks locker room.
See how social media is reacting to Smith’s about-face regarding Irving below.