Shaquille O'Neal and Charles Barkley aren't on Kyrie Irving's side when it comes to his feud with Celtics fans. On TNT Sunday, the two all-time greats ripped Irving for flipping off the TD Garden crowd multiple times during the Celtics' incredible 115-114 Game 1 win over the Nets.
"Well, if the great Bill Russell went through it, I wanna go through that. I don't wanna hear all that," O'Neal said. "Certain cities, they don't wanna hear what you said at the press conference. You know what's gonna happen Game 2? They gonna be talking more smack in Boston. It happens to the best of us. You don't think people said stuff to Charles Barkley, Hakeem Olajuwon? Man up!"
Admittedly, O'Neal invoking Russell probably isn't the best analogy for what Irving went through Sunday. Russell faced unconscionable racial attacks during his time in Boston, including an infamous incident when people broke into his house and smeared feces on the walls. Nobody should have to silently withstand that kind of bigotry.
But that's not what happened to Irving Sunday. He's a Boston sports fan villain because he quit on the Celtics after promising to re-sign with the team, and has ripped Celtics fan at every point — even comparing them to a jilted ex-girlfriend. On Sunday, Irving got booed and heckled.
He responded with middle fingers, expletives and a post-game rant.
"When people start yelling' p—' or 'b—' or 'f— you,' and all this stuff there's only but so much you can take as a competitor," Irving said. "We're the ones expected to be docile and be humble, take a humble approach, f— that, it's the playoffs. This is what it is."
Barkley, however, doesn't hold much sympathy for Irving's plight.
"Most of the fans are amazing. Some of them gonna say some rude stuff," Barkley said. "Please stop it, you athletes today, whining like little …"
It's easy to imagine where Barkley was going with that sentence. Irving played like a star Sunday (39 points) and simultaneously threw a temper tantrum. The Garden promises to be just as hostile Wednesday night.
