"I'm a beacon of light. I'm not afraid of these mics, these cameras. Any label you put on me I'm able to dismiss because I study. I know the Oxford dictionary."
Kyrie Irving with a lengthy answer on the public reaction to his sharing of an anti-Semitic film on social media:
Is Kevin Durant thinking about who the Nets might face in the play-in?
"Who cares? I don't care who we play. I don't care that we're in the play-in. Tip the ball up."
Kevin Durant has some words for the Celtics "fan" who threw a water bottle at Kyrie Irving:
"Grow the f--k up and enjoy the game. It's bigger than you."
"The guy has completely revolutionized the game. Going against each other has been great, but I think studying each other has been even more of a special bond" - Kyrie Irving on Stephen Curry
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@mikal_bridges
and Cam Johnson volunteered today at a community event at M.S. 898 Brooklyn Green School
Cam had to interrupt Mikal's media availability to show him he messed up the number on his autograph 😂
"I will say, I didn't like guarding Zach [LaVine] tonight. Mikal [Bridges] - you can take that job" 😂
- Spencer Dinwiddie on his defensive assignment tonight vs. the Bulls
Jacque Vaughn was asked if he feels like Kyrie Irving is letting the Nets down:
"I think you have a responsibility as a basketball player, like I do as a coach. I show up, I do my job every single day, that's what I signed up for, and that's my expectation for 1 through 17."
"Me and Kevin fight every year...I love guarding him. I enjoy it. He's the best scorer I've ever seen in my life...that's my brother, we compete, we fight every game, we're gonna fight again in Game 7"
PJ Tucker vs. Kevin Durant - not the disrespectful rivalry you think it is.
Kyrie Irving on getting to play with the new-look Nets:
"When you're playing with guys that are coming off the ball, being very selfless, putting their body on the line and thinking the game, it just makes my job a lot easier to lead the offense as best I can as the point guard"
James Harden wasn't surprised how quickly he was able to get back into the flow of things for the Nets:
"Not to brag or anything, but I'm really good at this game"
Joel Embiid on his viral tweet once the Ben Simmons trade happened:
"I just saw the picture on the internet. I thought he was well-dressed, he had a nice suit on, good-looking. He had some swag, I thought it was a good picture"
Cam Johnson was asked what stands out to him about Brooklyn so far:
"The traffic, and how long it takes to go one mile. Oh my goodness, we were 3 miles away from here and it took 45 minutes" 😂
"I know a lot of fans that are watching us had high expectations for us coming into the season and expected us to run away with the championship. If you're a fan and you appreciate Nets basketball and what we're trying to build, you'll follow us along this journey" - Kevin Durant
Kevin Durant is asked how he would sum up his time in Brooklyn, which is met with boos from Suns fans.
An emotional Durant: "I built a family over there. They're always going to be a part of my journey...I love those guys."
Kyrie Irving on what led to his strong 4th quarter vs. San Antonio tonight:
"James yelled at me - 'Kai, get the f-ing ball'" in the 3rd quarter...so I kind of took that personal and wanted to come out in the 4th quarter with an aggressive mindset"
Kyrie Irving said it wasn't his place to convince James Harden to stay in Brooklyn:
"James probably couldn't see what we were getting into. Obviously with my status being in and out, I saw a few things that maybe could have impacted things."
"What is being mad going to do? We're not going to change his mind...life is amazing so I can't be too mad at somebody making a decision for themselves"
Kevin Durant explains why the Nets aren't upset about Kyrie Irving being absent from the Nets
Kevin Durant on Kyrie Irving not being able to play at home:
"We're all confused. Pretty much everybody in the world is confused at this point. Early on in the season, people didn't understand what was going on but now, it just looks stupid. Eric, you gotta figure this out."
Kevin Durant takes it as a sign of "high" respect the Mavericks double & triple-teamed him tonight:
"I asked Jason Kidd - 'Well s**t, you pay Dorian Finney-Smith all that money, is he a defender or you gonna rely on this [defense] for these next 4 years on him?'" 😂
Are the Nets committed to Kyrie Irving long-term?
"He has some decisions to make on his own. We're looking for guys that want to be something bigger than themselves, play team basketball, and be available. That goes for Kyrie and everybody here."
"Incredibly grateful just to be back in the building, welcomed back with open arms by my teammates, the whole organization. Not gonna lie. it's been relatively tough to watch from the sidelines with everything going on in the world."
- Kyrie Irving
Joel Embiid said he exchanged words with Nic Claxton tonight because he "said something he shouldn't have"
"That's why when I walked up to his face, I told him to say it to my face again. That's why he looked away and he didn't say it again. He knows why"
"I didn't think he desreved a triple-double tonight. He talked about it... I'm like, 'You're not getting it tonight. You shouldn't have said nothing.'"
Kevin Durant doesn't think Bruce Brown deserved a triple-double tonight 😂
"The locker room is just a great vibe in there right now. I don't know what it is. Everything just shifted after the trade deadline. Everybody likes everybody, it's just great" - Bruce Brown
"There's nothing that somebody can tell me about my game. I put the work in. I go out there and produce. I try to be the best teammate that I can be every single night, simple as that."
- James Harden
"It's my first day back around the block with the guys, and it felt like it's been a long time"
Kyrie Irving talks about reintegrating himself with the Nets:
"I've got his back. I've always had his back, and now I have the opportunity to be with him. I've had his back from afar and I wish I was with him earlier in his career" - Patty Mills on Ben Simmons.
Kevin Durant isn't thinking at all about the Nets' series last year with the Celtics:
"That s--t was so long ago. One of our coaches is their coach now...it don't even make sense to look at that series."
"Who would've thought I'd come into Toronto and hit my first game-winner buzzer beater in my NBA career? Pray that there's more in the future. Glad that we got this win" - Kyrie Irving
Kyrie Irving responds to Chauncey Billups' praise of being the "most skilled" point guard to ever play the position:
"It gives me more motivation to continue to write this legacy"
Kevin Durant reflects on the "inspiring" 46-minute outing from James Harden tonight with his hamstring injury
"In the stat sheet, it may not look like it was great, but just his energy, his talk, his communication throughout the whole game was on point"
"It's easy when you have teammates like KD or [Kyrie]. They double them every time, so somebody's going to be wide open. They leave me wide open, so I'm just making the wide open shots. It's like practice"
Yuta Watanabe talks about shooting well from the floor this season:
"I didn't appreciate how me being unvaccinated came to be a stigma within my career that I don't want to play, or that I'm willing to give up everything to be a voice for the voiceless."
- Kyrie Irving
Kyrie Irving talks about the Nets integrating Ben Simmons and developing chemistry:
"Just wait for him to look like he's in All-Star form again, which I know will happen soon"
Cam Thomas reflects on what he'll miss about having Kyrie Irving on the Nets:
"We talk about Kobe and life in general. That's what I'll miss - me having that big brother. [KD} is my big brother for real, me and Ky, we have a lot of jokes together. I can joke around with Ky"
Kevin Durant says Kyrie Irving's trade request was "tough to stomach":
"We were finally building a culture that we always wanted. I didn't know what was going on with Kyrie and his situation with the organization...without him, we didn't have a clear identity."
Kevin Durant downplays the significance of tonight's win in Philly:
"It's a regular-season win. Did we win a championship tonight? No. Did we get to clinch a playoff spot? No"
"You want to be a champion? Every second that you step on the floor matters. Being a champion is in the habits and the work ethic, the care that you have for the game."
- Kevin Durant
Kyrie Irving reflects on this upcoming playoff run after coming to Brooklyn with Kevin Durant 2 years ago:
"No one really saw the vision that we had. We probably won't get the credit until 10 years down the line, 20 years down the line. That's just how history goes"
"I enjoyed coaching him. We've had some ups and downs along the way. I've also seen the man score 60 points, bring his kids into the locker room, grow as an individual and be a better teammate than when I first met him"
- Jacque Vaughn on Kyrie Irving's tenure in Brooklyn
James Harden on player empowerment in the NBA:
"We can control our own destiny. I needed to be around guys that I know want to win and are willing to do whatever it takes to win."
Kyrie Irving on Yuta Watanabe:
"He's the best shooter in the world right now. Stats prove it right now. He's the best shooter in the best league in the world right now"
Kyrie Irving jokes that he would love to go to a local bar in New Jersey to watch the Nets' home games:
"If you only understood how many people support the Nets from my hometown and where I'm from, it's a lot."