Kyrie Irving of the Brooklyn Nets looks on from the bench during the third quarter of the game against the Indiana Pacers at Barclays Center on October 31, 2022 in New York City.
Dustin Satloff | Getty Images
Nike is suspending its relationship with Kyrie Irving of the Brooklyn Nets and will no longer release the latest version of his sneakers.
“At Nike, we believe there is no place for hate speech and we condemn any form of antisemitism. To that end, we’ve made the decision to suspend our relationship with Kyrie Irving effective immediately and will no longer launch the Kyrie 8. We are deeply saddened and disappointed by the situation and its impact on everyone,” Nike said in a statement to CNBC’s Sara Eisen late Friday.
That Kyrie 8 was scheduled to be released later this month. Irving has had a signature line with Nike since 2014.
The Brooklyn Nets suspended Irving for at least five games without pay on Thursday, saying they were dismayed by his failure to “unequivocally say he has no antisemitic beliefs.”
Hours after Irving refused to issue the apology that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver sought for posting a link to an antisemitic work on his Twitter feed, the Nets said that Irving is “currently unfit to be associated with the Brooklyn Nets.”
“We were dismayed today, when given an opportunity in a media session, that Kyrie refused to unequivocally say he has no antisemitic beliefs, nor acknowledge specific hateful material in the film. This was not the first time he had the opportunity — but failed — to clarify,” the Nets said in a statement.
“Such failure to disavow antisemitism when given a clear opportunity to do so is deeply disturbing, is against the values of our organization, and constitutes conduct detrimental to the team. Accordingly, we are of the view that he is currently unfit to be associated with the Brooklyn Nets.”
