Tuesday, Kyrie Irving went to the NBA offices for a one-on-one with Adam Silver. For the NBA, it was necessary to go beyond the excuses of the All-Star point guard and to really know what was behind the words and the sharing of this anti-Semitic film. For the NBA boss, himself a Jew as Charles Barkley reminded him, there is “no doubt” that Kyrie Irving is not anti-Semitic.
“We had a direct and frank discussion”reports Adam Silver at the New York Times. “He’s someone I’ve known for about ten years, and I’ve never heard an anti-Semitic word from him or, frankly, hatred directed against any group. But whether he is anti-Semitic or not is not decisive in terms of the damage caused by the publication of hateful content. »
Because even if Kyrie Irving does not have a personal hatred of the Jewish community, the fact that he shares and adheres (to what degree?) to anti-Semitic theories is obviously a problem.
Before this interview with the New York daily, Adam Silver had also spoken on the subject at a conference in Washington organized by the Sports Business Journal, and he returned to the player’s suspension, and the response, quite late, from the franchise and the NBA.
“I think we got to the right compromise with his suspension and with hindsight we might have been able to get there faster” he acknowledges. “I accept this criticism. But I felt it was important to understand the context in which this message was posted to understand what kind of punishment was appropriate. This is not to excuse him but simply to assess which sanction was the most appropriate. »
“I think Amazon has to make decisions as well”
Adam Silver explains that he had to watch the film shared by Kyrie Irving, and the leaders of the Nets too. A 3.5-hour feature film whose anti-Semitic content was beyond doubt.
” Once the investigation was carried out, it became clear to me that this was indeed hate speech and we reacted, with the Nets, continues Adam Silver, that it is important that everyone is held accountable for what they say and share with their fans. “Even if he had said ‘I’m sorry’, that wouldn’t have ended this story. Granted, it certainly would have made a big difference, I think, to millions of people, but that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t have had to answer for it. I think that’s what we’re looking for in the league: real accountability, whether it’s a player, a coach, an executive and all the way up to the owner, or the NBA office. , that we are held accountable for our actions. It is important for the fan. »
Finally, he also regrets that Amazon agrees to distribute such content. “I think Amazon has to make decisions as well” concludes Adam Silver. “My first instinct was to tell myself that such frankly filthy and hate-speech content could not be available on Amazon Prime. »
