During an appearance on The Rematch podcast, former NBA player Stephen Jackson said Kyrie Irving bought a house for the family of George Floyd, the Black Minnesota man who was murdered by police on Memorial Day in 2020.
Jackson, who was a close friend of the late Floyd, said that Irving and other celebrities had reached out to help the family since the 46-year-old’s death.
“Kyrie Irving bought them a house. Lil Wayne’s manager bought them a Mercedes-Benz. Barbra Streisand gave them stock in Disney,” Jackson, who defended DeSean Jackson of the Philadelphia Eagles for making anti-Semitic remarks over the summer, said on the podcast.
Marc J. Spears of ESPN’s The Undefeated reported that Irving gave the family the money for the house about five or six months ago. A publicist for Irving also confirmed the report to CBS News and said the six-time All-Star just wanted to help.
While the Brooklyn Nets guard has been active on the social-justice front off the court and should be commended for his efforts, he has not played in an NBA game for two weeks.
Irving, who was on a Zoom call for the campaign of a Manhattan district attorney candidate last week while his team was on the floor playing a game, has been out since January 6 due to a combination of personal reasons, NBA-mandated quarantine and getting in shape ahead of his return.
Nets head coach Steve Nash said Irving will practice on Tuesday and the team is “hopeful” the star guard will be available for Wednesday’s game in Cleveland. If Irving does take the floor, it will be the first time he plays with newly acquired James Harden.
The 28-year-old is averaging 27.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 6.1 assists through seven games this season for Brooklyn.
Jackson, who retired from the NBA in 2014 after playing 14 seasons, has been a strong voice for social justice since the death of his friend. That does make it a little confusing as to why he has been so adamant about defending DeSean Jackson’s anti-Semitism.
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