Boston Celtics guard Kyrie Irving has been fined $25,000 for using inappropriate language toward a fan, the NBA announced Sunday.
Irving took responsibility for a profane outburst directed at a fan in Philadelphia who yelled at him and referenced LeBron James during Friday's game against the 76ers.
In a video that circulated on social media after Friday's game, a fan is heard shouting, "Kyrie, where's LeBron?" as Celtics players walked down their tunnel to the visitors' locker room at halftime. Irving appears to look up toward the fan before offering a profane response.
Irving said he talked to the league office about his outburst on Saturday but was waiting to hear if he would be fined. Asked if he had any regrets about the incident, Irving was emphatic he did not.
"Hell no," said Irving. "[The fan was] man enough to record it on video, then that's all him. I'm glad he got his [social media] name out there and then, kinda, five seconds of fame and it going viral. That's the social media platform we live on. I take full responsibility [for] what I said and excuse [to] the kids at home and you move on."
Later, Irving added: "At the end of the day, we're human. It's in heat of the moment, and frustrations arises. We were at halftime, we were down by four, in an environment, a season opener in Philly. Being with a young team like we have here and staying composed, handling that before we go in the locker room and addressing what we have to do in the locker room and going out and handling business and getting the W, that's really the only thing that matters to me.
"It's up to the league at this point. But like I said, I'm going to take full responsibility for what I said. I don't have any regrets for it."
