Brooklyn Nets superstar point guard Kyrie Irving is one of the main NBA players who is not comfortable with the 2019-20 season resuming at Walt Disney World. The 2016 champion doesn't believe basketball is needed right now due to the ongoing racial injustices in America, along with the fact that the coronavirus is still spreading in Florida.
According to Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News, Irving has been urging his Nets teammates to skip the “bubble” games at the Walt Disney Resort. Uncle Drew has also told teammates and players that they can create their own league.
Kyrie Irving’s push to skip the bubble has spawned a debate over whether NBA players could effectively influence social reform while playing, or whether they’d have to boycott to force meaningful change. Irving not only led a discussion with close to 100 union members in a conference call, he also urged Nets players to skip the bubble recently in a separate group chat, the Daily News has learned. In that chat, Irving proposed that players could start their own league, according to a source.
Irving and Los Angeles Lakers veteran shooting guard Avery Bradley have been at the forefront of pushing players to really sit down and consider if finishing the 2019-20 season is vital right now. Both players are of the belief that if sports return, all the focus from the Black Lives Matter Movement will be gone.
The Nets will be among the 22 teams partaking in the “bubble” games. However, Irving won't be playing since he's recovering from shoulder surgery.
The “bubble” games are set to begin on July 30.