CBS Sports Radio personality Maggie Gray has been covering Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving since he was in high school. She was even a defender of his in recent years.
However, she revealed that he has now become “impossible to defend.”
Gray’s relationship with Irving dates back to her time at MSG as a sideline reporter for their high school game of the week. She revealed on the Awful Announcing Podcast that this recent controversy with Irving has changed her stance on defending him.
“This can be hard when you work in this business long enough,” Gray told AA’s Brandon Contes. “I had always been a Kyrie Irving defender. It’s like hey I met the kid when he was 17 years old. But at some point it becomes impossible to defend. And I would never even try when you are trafficking the kind of things Kyrie was doing earlier this year. You are gonna lose support.
“He lost me with promoting that anti-Semitic video. It’s unfortunate because there were so many people rooting for him. I think a lot of people, myself included felt disappointed and let down. He definitely lost a lot of people that were in his corner.”
Irving famously received a ton of heat earlier this season for promoting an anti-Semitic film and then refusing to back down from his stance.
He was ultimately suspended by the Brooklyn Nets but returned to the court just two weeks later.
Nike notably terminated their contract with Irving amidst the controversy. So, Gray certainly wasn’t alone in shifting her support for Irving after this incident.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.