Howard Stern criticized Kyrie Irving‘s recent headline-making antisemitism tweet that got him suspended from the Brooklyn Nets, during an episode of The Howard Stern Show this week. The disc jockey didn’t hold back on his feelings about the athlete and even called him a “moron” while expressing his frustration about the situation. “This Kyrie Irving is a complete douchebag. I mean what a f*cking … you know he’s a flat earther? He’s a douchebag,” Howard said on Monday morning, which could be heard in an audio clip on TMZ.
He went on to mock him with more comments. “Just let me hate the Jews. Don’t bust my balls. I just wanna go on Twitter and hate Jews. Can’t you just leave me alone? Everyone hates Jews. Why ya picking on me? I’m just an NBA player. I don’t understand anything. A lot of people hate the Jews. Why ya picking on me? The Earth is flat. I think Jews are lizards. Next question. Just leave me be,” he said.
Howard’s comments about Kyrie, who shared a link for Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America — a movie that is said to promote antisemitism last week, come after he publicly apologized for his actions and claimed he reacted out of “emotion” instead of considering his “Jewish brothers and sisters” in the process. “To All Jewish families and Communities that are hurt and affected from my post, I am deeply sorry to have caused you pain, and I apologize,” he wrote in an Instagram post, which can be seen below. “I initially reacted out of emotion to being unjustly labeled Anti-Semitic, instead of focusing on the healing process of my Jewish Brothers and Sisters that were hurt from the hateful remarks made in the Documentary.”
“I want to clarify any confusion on where I stand fighting against Anti- semticism by apologizing for posting the documentary without context and a factual explanation outlining the specific beliefs in the Documentary I agreed with and disagreed with,” he continued. “I had no intentions to disrespect any Jewish cultural history regarding the Holocaust or perpetuate any hate. I am learning from this unfortunate event and hope we can find understanding between us all. I am no different than any other human being. I am a seeker of truth and knowledge, and I know who I Am.”
Like Howard, LeBron James also publicly criticized Kyrie’s actions in a recent interview. “I believe that what Kyrie did caused some harm to a lot of people,” LeBron said to reporters after losing a basketball game to the Utah Jazz on Friday, according to CNN. “And he has since, over the last – I think it was today, or yesterday – he apologized. But he caused some harm and I think it’s unfortunate. But I don’t stand on the position to harm people when it comes to your voice or your platform or anything. So it doesn’t matter what color your skin is, how tall you are, what position you’re in. If you are promoting or soliciting or saying harmful things to any community that harms people, then I don’t respect it. I don’t condone it.”
Kyrie’s suspension could end on Saturday in the Nets game against the Los Angeles Clippers if he satisfies his team’s requirements, which includes meeting with Jewish community leaders. His partnership with Nike was also suspended due to his tweet, but it’s not known if the suspension will be permanent.