NBA commissioner 'disappointed' in Kyrie Irving's response to antisemitism controversy

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver plans to meet with Kyrie Irving regarding the Brooklyn Nets star's promotion of an antisemitic film after being unhappy with his response to the controversy.

In a statement on Thursday, Silver chastised Irving for his "reckless decision" to recently "post a link to a film containing deeply offensive antisemitic material."

Irving has been facing backlash after promoting a documentary titled Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America, which contains antisemitic tropes. He first defended the post by saying "history is not supposed to be hidden from anybody." On Wednesday, though, he released a statement with the Anti-Defamation League saying he opposes "all forms of hatred and oppression" and is "aware of the negative impact of my post towards the Jewish community and I take responsibility."

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Irving also announced he would donate $500,000 to "causes and organizations that work to eradicate hate and intolerance in our communities." But his statement notably did not include an explicit apology for sharing the film, nor a condemnation of its views, though he said he does "not believe everything said in the documentary was true or reflects my morals and principles."

So on Thursday, Silver said he is "disappointed" that Irving "has not offered an unqualified apology and more specifically denounced the vile and harmful content contained in the film he chose to publicize." He also said he will meet with Irving in the next week "to discuss this situation."

The controversy comes as Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, has also been facing backlash for repeatedly making antisemitic comments. Ye returned to Twitter on Thursday to simply post a photo of Irving, whom he previously praised by writing, "There's some real ones still here."