Kyrie Irving and Boston Celtics fans really don't like each other. If there was any doubt about the Boston faithful's thoughts on Irving, their Game 1 against the Brooklyn Nets all but removed it. Irving and the home crowd got into it multiple times, with both sides trading barbs against each other. It was peak playoff intensity amplified with legitimate disdain from both player and fans.
While many outside fans (read: non-Celtics and Nets fans) enjoyed the trash-talking from Irving, one former player wasn't happy with the star's antics. On Inside the NBA, Shaquille O'Neal called out Kyrie Irving's actions on the court. Shaq told āUncle Drewā to man up and disregard the fans talking smack against him. (via NBA on TNT)
"You know what's going to happen in Game 2? They're going to be talking more smack."@SHAQ & Chuck weigh in on Kyrie Irving's postgame comments & exchanges with Celtics fans. pic.twitter.com/llmSvuBK4y
ā NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) April 18, 2022
O'Neal knows a thing or two about Celtics fans, as he has played both for and against the team in his storied career. Shaq is essentially telling the Nets star that letting opposing fans get into his head isn't a good idea. With how passionate Boston sports fans can get, Irving can expect these jeers to grow louder as the series progresses.
For his part, Irving defended his reaction on the court to Celtics fans. The Nets star stated that the home court was yelling obscenities at him throughout the game, and he was simply just dishing back his own trash talk. He also implicitly addressed Shaq's āman upā take (which was expected to pop up from fans other than Shaq), saying that: (via ClutchPoints' Dave Early)
āItās not every fan I donāt want to attack every Boston fan but when people start yelling āpāyā or ābāchā and āfāk youāā¦thereās only but so much you can take as a competitor. Weāre the ones expected to be docile and be humble, take a humble approach, nah fāk that, itās the playoffs,ā
"When people start yelling p-y or b-ch and f-k youā¦there's only but so much you can take as a competitorā¦.If somebody's gonna call me out ā¦I'm gonna look them straight in the eye and see if they're really about it. Most of the time they're not."
-Kyrie Irving pic.twitter.com/j3NNPTN1SQ
ā DaveEarly (@DavidEarly) April 17, 2022
This series will be one hell of an entertaining watch for fans, both on and off the court. The Nets dropped Game 1 on a clutch Jayson Tatum drive, but that was with Kevin Durant struggling the entire game. We'll see if Irving and co. can snatch back home-court advantage with a win in Game 2.
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