Kyrie Irving appears to have a plan.
The Brooklyn Nets star led a call of roughly 80 players on Friday in which sitting out the 22-team finish to the regular season and postseason was discussed.
On the call, Irving, according to The Athletic, said, “I don’t support going into Orlando. … Something smells a little fishy.”
Irving, who is the vice president of the Players’ Association, took it a step further when he reportedly proposed that players start their own league.
On Monday, Irving voiced concerns about the optics of black NBA players convening in a quarantine bubble to provide entertainment in the aftermath over George Floyd’s homicide in Minneapolis.
Here is Monday’s statement that calls for “UNITY and CHANGE” while vowing to fight a “system” of “Use and Abuse:”
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“We are a group of men and women from different teams and industries that are normally painted as opponents, but have put our egos and differences aside to make sure we stand united and demand honesty during this uncertain time,” the statement reads.
“Native indigenous African Caribbean men and women entertaining the world, we will continue to use our voices and platforms for positive change and truth.
“We are truly at an inflection point in history where as a collective community, we can band together — UNIFY — and move as one. We need all our people with us and we will stand together in solidarity.
“As an oppressed community we are going on 500-plus years of being systemically targeted, used for our IP [intellectual property]/Talent, and also still being killed by the very people that are supposed to ‘protect and serve’ us.
“WE HAVE HAD ENOUGH!
“We are combating the issues that matter most: We will not accept the racial injustices that continue to be ignored in our communities. We will not be kept in the dark when it comes to our health and well-being. And we will not ignore the financial motivations/expectations that have prevented us historically from making sound decisions.
“This is not about individual players, athletes or entertainers. This is about our group of strong men and women uniting for change. We have our respective fields, however, we will not just shut up and play to distract us from what this whole system has been about: Use and Abuse.
“We are all fathers, daughters leaders and so much more. So what is our BIG picture? We are in this for UNITY and CHANGE!”
A group of players including LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kawhi Leonard, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook agreed on a call last month to form a united front to return to play. Irving was not on that call, sources told Yahoo Sports’ Vincent Goodwill.
