Nets Reveal Steps for Kyrie Irving to Return to Team

The Brooklyn Nets General Manager, Sean Marks disclosed the series of steps Kyrie Irving will need to accomplish before returning to the Nets.

The Nets suspended superstar guard, Kyrie Irving took a step in the right direction with his late apology Thursday night. But there are a series of mandatory steps Irving will need to fulfill before being able to return to the team.

After an eventful week of Irving having disgruntled exchanges with media, doubling down on his actions, and refusing to apologize for promoting a link to a film packed with anti-semitic tropes, the team handed the guard a suspension of at least five games without pay. Hours after the suspension was finalized, Irving took to Instagram to finally apologize for his actions. In his long Instagram post, Irving stated: 'To all Jewish families and communities that are hurt and affected from my post, I am deeply sorry to have cause you pain and I apologize.' That was step one of a long, thorough process ahead. Actions will need to follow. 

"After anything like this, you'd always hope there is a change, a change in feelings and a change in attitude," Brooklyn Nets general manager Sean Marks told reporters in D.C. "Per his apology, that is a step in the right direction. Again, as we stated, actions speak louder than words. The apology is a step in the right direction. It's not enough. 

"There's going to be some remedial steps and measures that will be in place for him to obviously seek some counseling, dealing with some anti-hate and some Jewish leaders within our community. He's going to have to sit down with them. He's going to have to sit down with the organization after this. We'll evaluate and see if this is the right opportunity to bring him back." 

The meetings, which Marks stated will be non-negotiable face-to-face meetings, are a major requirement for Irving to rejoin the team. Until those meetings - meetings with anti-hate and Jewish leaders in the community - are accomplished, Irving will remain suspended. 

Outside of the mandatory steps Marks disclosed, the Nets GM denied there are no active or past considerations for waiving or trading the suspended superstar. 

Before Irving issued the late apology on his Instagram platform Thursday night, the Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt tweeted the organization will not accept the suspended guard's donation - $500,000. In Greenblatt's latest responses on the social media platform, he fully supported the team's suspension and called for the guard to take additional actions: 'This is an encouraging step from Kyrie Irving. But actions speak louder than words.' 

Irving hasn't been communicating with the Nets organization as thoroughly as the organization wanted. In the statement announcing Irving's suspension, the powerful statement included the organization's rightful displeasure of Irving's comments during Thursday's practice. 

"There was some; I would say there wasn't enough," Marks said. "Circumstances like this when you're dealing with an issue that is far greater than honestly the game of basketball, I think that's what we need to keep in perspective here. 

"We all play a game of basketball for a living, manage the game, coach the game, and so forth. When you touch subjects like this and you don't show remorse for them immediately, that's when people start asking questions. That's why we're here doing this right now."