Amar’e Stoudemire is leaving his post with the Nets and said the franchise needs to take a harder stance with star guard Kyrie Irving.
Stoudemire worked under head coach Steve Nash as a player development assistant this season.
Stoudemire made his comments on ESPN’s morning talk shows. He appeared on both the Get Up show with Mike Greenberg and the First Take show with Stephen A. Smith and Jay Williams (hat tip to NetsDaily.com).
Irving’s refusal to get vaccinated played a large part in the Nets’ demise, according to Stoudemire.
“Yeah, I think it hurt us. It definitely hurt us because we didn’t have consistency enough with Kyrie to build chemistry with the group, with the team,” he said. “He’s playing only away games depending which city it is … can’t play in New York … therefore we had different lineups, different matchups depending on the game schedule. So it made it difficult for us coaches to figure out who’s going to play in spite of Kyrie.”
Stoudemire, a former All-Star forward/center, said Irving has to make a greater commitment to the franchise in order to solidify his superstar status. Irving was left off the NBA’s 75th anniversary Top 75 squad.
“I feel Kyrie has to make a commitment himself to the game of basketball. on how committed he is to being a great player because I feel like Kyrie should have been on the Top 75 list,” Stoudemire said. “But at the same time, you have to now take that as motivation going into next season and proving, prove to yourself that you are a top player and do it consistently throughout the season. “
Irving is expected to opt out of the final year of his contract and become a free agent this summer. Stoudemire believes that GM Sean Marks needs to get assurances about Irving’s commitment before re-signing the enigmatic guard. Marks indicated that his conversations with Irving this summer will include whether Irving is motivated to playing regularly going forward.
“You can say you’re available and ready to play next season, but are you actually going to do that or are you going to renege on that and not play and if that’s the case you’d have this situation where he says he’s going to be available but he doesn’t, now what do we do? So now you have to negotiate that into the contract, in the writing, try to figure out a way to have the writing set in the contract to where if he doesn’t play these things happen,” Stoudemire said.
I don’t understand why everyone is upset with Irving. It’s his choice on getting vaccinated. He never had to change his stance over NY City mandate.
It was his choice and in by making that choice he knew he wouldn’t be available to play home games and have a chance to build team chemistry.
He chose to put himself above the team.
I think it’s because he’s a tool for a whole variety of reasons.
A very talented tool, but a tool nonetheless.
@Orien – he’s a 5 tool player
I’d tend to agree, but not getting vaccinated with a vaccine that apparently needs a lifelong supply of boosters every few months and still doesn’t prevent you from catching and spreading a virus that 99% of people survive, regardless of vaccination status, isn’t one of them. Wish I did the same thing.
You may want to count death numbers again. The Virus mutates. That’s the reason for booster shots. Either you get with the program. Or go cowboy. Kyrie doesn’t believe in anything but himself. So find another hero.
That would be true if Kyrie just didn’t want to get it for the reasons you cited instead of believing in insane conspiracy theories pertaining to the vaccine. Otherwise, I agree.
Seriously?
I can see not agreeing with something so incredibly obvious but it’s hard to believe anyone could be unable to even figure out the opposing POV.
Are you pretending that you don’t care what people do as long as it doesn’t break an actual law?
He’s been a head case long before the vaccine.
He also just left the season before because Jan 6th made him feel poopy!
Choices have consequences, not all of them good.
His decision was based on mis/disinformation, probably huge ego and desire to go against the grain. He also thinks, or at least says the earth is flat despite all evidence to the contrary.
Oh tell me more oh wise one! You seem to have all the answers and proof
I don’t have all the answers by a long shot, but I also am not a small minded person who can’t look past their biases.
Are you flat earther like Kyrie Irving?
If not, that should tell you something about his views.
“Oh tell me more oh wise one! You seem to have all the answers and proof”
That’s funny, considering Irving thinks he knows better than people in their respective field of expertise.
Upset is the wrong word
Past is the past, the word today on the heels of a massive ext is TRUSTWORTHY
He’s earned a hard pass here in spades, tho a player of his caliber in the NBA often get’s many a blind eyes turned towards this behavior….Marks doesn’t seem to be talking like he wants to be one of them.
Past has told us many times you reluctantly take the gamble, past has been wrong oh so many times We shall see soon how Marks and Tsai respond …….That’s the story here
Kyrie wants 200+ ….. You wanna sign that check?
And other peoples choice to think he’s an idiot. Freedom works both ways.
when you’re a max contract player only playing half the games that’s a problem. idc if it’s injuries or something as stupid as not getting vaccinated, you’re taking up a lot of your team’s payroll to not even show up.
you’re not very bright if you don’t understand.
If I were the Nets I would not sign him. He has proven time and time again he is not dedicated to the game that has allowed him to have a good life and his family for a long time.
He sat out last yr too. Did we forget that ????
Had to clear his head remember. A diva and head case imo. Why pay for that.
Ok ……. Now ……. Let all the geniuses start the Kyrie to the Knicks talk.
Never wanted him. Want him less NOW
The Knicks maxing him out and him sitting out for a few years for various reasons is what I would bet on … because it’s the Knicks lol
Yeah I’d bet you’d say that ……
Bravo
If we go by what is typical of certain franchises, I say that Irving signs with the Knicks, Jets and Mets. He plays for none of them while collecting his check, then they all agree to let him go with deferred payment, which he gets for 40 years after he gets advice from Bobby Bonilla. Afterward, Bonilla takes him on his yacht so he can show him that the world is round, or they just stay off the shore of Miami Beach fishing, coming ashore where Bonilla gets freebies for life due to 1997. Irving can’t bring Bonilla to Cleveland for freebies. Both crack jokes about NY.
Get off Jeters couch . You’ll see reality
Reality?
Jeter’s no longer here. The Knicks didn’t make the playoffs. The Jets aren’t likely to this upcoming year. And with the Mets…wait for it…like every year.
Westbrook & Davis for Kyrie and Simmons.
Davis is injury prone
Lakers need to add 2027 and 2029 protected picks
I know that Westbrook value is MVP AND All time great
And Simmons isn’t injury prone?
Simmons hurt his back going to emotional therapy ffs
Maybe that means he was finally able to cry and move on.
It gonna happen.
Is it too late to add an i?— as a 5th letter.
Do the Lakers want Irving?
Lakers get Irving
Pacers get Westbrook and Lakers 2027 pick
Nets get Hield and Brogdon
Bad trade for Indiana
Can’t see the Pacers doing that.
Irving for Westbrook and a draft pick in 2027?
Westbrook is probably going to be cut and stretched by a team that wants to keep their payroll low for a few years.
A low first round pick from the Lakers doesn’t even get someone to take Westbrook for nothing.
Show me one team that Kyrie used to play for that wishes he was still there?….
I’ll wait….
Duke …..
Boston no, but if the situation was right I could see Cleveland taking him back.
If the Cavs had the chance to bring him back, I highly doubt they would. They do need more offense, but putting Kyrie in a backcourt with Garland (and hopefully Sexton) would be a weird fit.
They also traded Kevin Porter Jr. for a ham sandwich because they were tired of dealing with his drama. I can’t imagine they’d make the kind of commitment Kyrie would likely require.
BOS and CLE, at least at the time it mattered. Ainge was pushing his extension offer to KI even after KI indicated he was leaving. CLE pulled out all stops to get KI to change his stance on demanding a trade before trading him to BOS (even asked LeBron to speak with him, though LeBron did refuse). Whether they say they want him back now is of no moment.
Well! Somebody asked…
Prefer Garland to Irving. Irving missed games in CLE too. He may have learned how there. His outs in reg. seasons:
rookie-15, 2-23, 3-11, 4-7 (plus 7 in PO), 5-29 (plus the big shot), 6-10, 7-went boo hoo despite a clear path to a title.
Having Irving was a point for CLE attracting James away from Miami, who could then make up for Irving’s poor leadership. Garland is a better leader just by being a kid making his way & meshing with Bickerstaff & not being Sexton, who was ruined by the boss’s favoritism.
When Garland is rolling, he plays like Irving, teasing defenders on the dribble, shooting relaxed.
There’s gotta be a way to trade Westbrook for Kyrie and reunite James and Kyrie and Westbrook and Durant. They would all just have to resolve any issues.
That’s a good thought lol.
Money has taken this to a whole mother level. It’s crazy really.
His next contract should be filled with performance clauses otherwise you will get 50 cents on the dollar from him.
I would love to see him unsigned for a year but as the man said up top too many execs will get tunnel vision if he is available and fanbases will assume he will be normal once he comes to their city.
Over/under on who has less suitors
Westbrook or Irving?
Cmon, Westy can cost games even if present… moreso if in charge.
I think Kyrie is often an idiot, and pretty selfish, but blaming the whole season on him is a little dumb. They didn’t have Harden for stretches, Durant was out for months, and they got nothing from Simmons. It isn’t just on Kyrie. If Simmons can return healthy, and Kyrie and Durant can stay healthy, that team will be stacked next year. But since I’m a Knicks fan, I hope they piss Kyrie off enough to leave town, haha.
I’d tell Kyrie to kick rocks. He’s a headcase n not worth the time
Amare is right. What a waste. but hey…he’s a hero to that group of people who fought against tyranny or something. FREEEEEEDOM!
Irving is a top 75 head case, not a top 75 player. Look at the ruins he leaves behind when he departs a team. The Knicks seem like the perfect franchise for Kyrie. Maybe he can team up with GM Lebron there one day.