The drama surrounding Kyrie Irving and his future with the Brooklyn Nets remain ongoing. But as far as Chris Russo is concerned, the New York Knicks should want nothing to do with that future.
After word leaked that Brooklyn had given Irving permission to pursue a sign-and-trade opportunity and he was unable to find anything worthwhile, he announced that he would opt-in to his player option with a very Kyrie quote. Troubling reports about the way Irving treated teammates and staff behind-the-scenes only add fuel to the fire surrounding his future in Brooklyn.
While some have wondered if the Los Angeles Lakers would end up being Irving’s landing spot, others have wondered if the Knicks might end up as his next destination.
Longtime New York radio voice, and current very loud voice on ESPN’s First Take, Chris Russo was adamant on Wednesday that Knicks fans want nothing to do with the mercurial Irving.
“The Knick fans wanted nothing to do with Kyrie Irving … I don’t know what team wants him!”
—@MadDogUnleashed on Kyrie Irving’s future pic.twitter.com/ioCBTubt8c
— First Take (@FirstTake) June 29, 2022
“There is no way a Knick fan wanted to root for Kyrie Irving,” Russo said. “I have been here for 40 years doing radio, the Knicks fans wanted nothing to do with Kyrie Irving. I don’t know if he had that many options. I don’t know what team wants him because there are so many distractions and so many things you have to put up with.”
Russo might not speak for all Knicks fans and, given the way the franchise has been mired in mediocrity, there might be enough willing to take a chance on Kyrie in order to have the superstar on their squad. Then again, they’ve also had a front-row seat to all the drama he’s been involved with in Brooklyn. They might agree with Russo that they’d rather just look elsewhere than have to deal with his “martyr” complex.
