Kyrie Irving #2 of the Cleveland Cavaliers speaks with the media during media availability for the 2017 NBA All-Star Game at The Ritz-Carlton New Orleans on February 17, 2017 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Ronald Martinez/Getty Images/AFP
NEW ORLEANS — Kyrie Irving is the point guard for the world champions.
Whether that’s the round world or the flat world is not exactly clear.
The Cleveland point guard made headlines in recent days when he questioned whether the Earth was round, first making the remarks on a podcast and then discussing them again at All-Star weekend — where they have become the talk of New Orleans.
“Out of all the podcast, that’s what you took out of it, the flat Earth?” Irving asked reporters who tried after the Eastern Conference practice on Saturday to pin him down on whether he genuinely believes it. “The fact that it’s a social phenomenon, that Kyrie thinks the world is flat, is hilarious. … Does it matter to you that I believe the world is flat?”
Irving stated that, in his opinion, “It really doesn’t matter.” Then he added, perhaps facetiously, “The fact that it’s a conversation, I’m glad it got people talking like this.”
Irving got some support from Golden State’s Draymond Green, who defended those who might call Irving’s stance something less than solid.
“It’s just his opinion,” Green said. “It’s hard to call someone’s opinions crazy. That’s what he thinks.”
Told that there is photo evidence that the Earth is in fact round, Green offered this response: “Who’s to say that picture is telling the truth? … I’m not saying I think it’s flat. I don’t know. But it could be.”
LeBron James was so amused by the flat-Earth talk that he yelled over to Irving’s nearby spot during an interview session Saturday.
“Kyrie, the earth is flat, right?” James shouted.
“Yeah,” came the reply from Irving.
“That’s news,” James said. “So there we go.”