BOSTON — During the Dallas Mavericks’ 138-110 loss to the Boston Celtics on Friday night, Kyrie Irving received a clear and resonant message from the TD Garden crowd, which booed him during starting lineup introductions and when he had the ball, as well as loud chants of “Kyrie sucks” in the second half.
“They have the right to boo. I haven’t won against them in my career in the last five games, so they have every right to boo until I do,” Irving said. “I believe that is what makes theatrics and competitive sports enjoyable. You just have to embrace it. “It’s part of it.”
Irving, whose stay with Boston from 2017 to 2019 ended on a sour note, replied to the hostile reception with understanding, accepting the fans’ right to vent their displeasure.
“No, the booing is part of it, guy,” Irving replied. “Again, I battled with Boston supporters before I even came here. I wouldn’t say I’ve exited them many times, but early in my career, we used to travel up to Boston and smash them around. I’ve seen both sides of the coin, and I’ve recognized that it’s part of being competitive.
“I’ve had both sides, sending Boston fans home and them booing me all the time, and then seeing how they treat some of the league’s top players,” Irving stated. “They want to win. “So you have to give them credit.”
This answer represents a significant turnaround in Irving’s attitude toward Boston fans, whom he had previously antagonized, particularly during an incident in which he stomped on the Celtics emblem after a playoff game at TD Garden in May 2021.
After a difficult game on Friday, Irving took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to express his thoughts, highlighting the importance of “being poised and accepting all the tests on this path.”
After the Celtics loss, Irving stated that while the game acted as a “litmus test” for Dallas, the club is now focused on learning from it ahead of Sunday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers.
“Yeah, this was a highly intense, high-emotion battle between two of the greatest teams in the league, and you can tell that some of our mental blunders, as well as the mistakes we did, they took full advantage of, and it was a litmus test.” It’s simply another regular season game at the end of the day.”
“We need to prepare for a solid game against the Sixers on Sunday, but we just take our lessons, man,” Irving said. “Grow from it.”
