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The Nets will be reminded of one of the most chaotic times in their history if Kyrie Irving makes his return to Barclay Center on Tuesday — a year after forcing himself out of Brooklyn to join the Mavericks.
There is no clear guess as to how Brooklyn fans will react to the point guard, who, when he did play, lit up the floor while averaging 27.1 points on 48.9 percent shooting for the Nets.
On the other hand, his tenure in Brooklyn was beset with injuries and off-the-court controversies — like tweeting a link to an anti-Semitic film and refusing to get a COVID vaccination — that led to suspensions and other absences.
Irving, who had missed the Mavs’ previous six games with a thumb injury, was in the lineup for their 118-102 victory over the 76ers on Monday.
He finished with 23 points, eight assists and five rebounds in 35 minutes.
The performance might seem to bode well for Tuesday, but it’s not definite that Irving will play in Brooklyn.
If he does, it will be just the 24th time in 50 games this season that Irving and Luka Doncic will appear in the same games.
According to Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News, Irving said there is “excitement” about the opportunity.
“Yeah, excitement because I get to play back in Barclays. But, outside of that, it’s nothing deeper to look into and I think we need to do a better job of that,” Irving said. “Not making it something else other than sports. Not saying you’re doing it, I just feel like the environment is created like that.
“What happens if you get booed there? … I think we just need to normalize, this is basketball. Fans are going to be fans. Some people are gonna love you. Some people are not gonna like you since you left. But it’s part of the overall conglomerate we are as a league. That’s what makes it exciting. The fandom. The support. Just staying poised through the chaos.”
Irving also posted on X after the game, saying, “I gotta stay poised,” and “Chop wood, Carry water.”
Irving played just 143 games across 3 ¹/₂ seasons with the Nets, as he refused to get a COVID vaccination despite the league’s mandates in the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons and he also sat out during his final year due to his promotion of an anti-Semitic film.
The initial lack of apology for promoting the film earned him a suspension from the Nets and owner Joe Tsai.
“It’s a lot of different emotions,” Nic Claxton told The Post about the possibility of Irving playing Tuesday night. “Obviously, he missed a lot of games for various different reasons. But he was always a good mentor to myself and our relationship transcends basketball.”
“It’s the next game for us and I want our group to be concerned with playing the Dallas Mavericks,” Jacque Vaughn said. “That’s really all I’m concerned about and for us to be able to turn the page and try to get a win [Tuesday].”
When the Nets faced the Mavericks in Dallas on Oct. 27, the eight-time All-Star said there was never any bad blood between him and the organization.
“I was never on bad terms with the organization. I just think there was a lot of chaos and noise, as usual, from the media,” Irving said. “I’m not going to blame you guys or anything, but nobody really knew what was going on behind the scenes. I’m sure that people have their sources they go to [about] what was going on and what really happened.
“But for me, it was the best decision of my career to ask for a trade. I knew I needed peace of mind.”
Paired with Kevin Durant and James Harden, the trio was acquired with the hope of delivering the Nets their first NBA title.
Instead, they only managed one playoff series win against Boston, which was followed by a semifinal-round loss to the Bucks in the 2020-21 season.
After the bust of what was the Big 3, the Nets were forced to rebuild. But the saga didn’t cloud Irving’s former teammates’ opinion of him.
“A lot,” Royce O’Neale said about what he took away from his time with Irving. “Even from the first moment when I was here, him being a great dude on and off the court. Being one of the leaders that we had. His work ethic and the way he plays, it’s fun to watch. Just being around him, seeing his success and keep going, I’m happy for him.”
“His overall skill set. His handle,” Claxton said. “He’s able to manipulate the defense and just pretty much his overall offensive game.”
Dorian Finney-Smith and Spencer Dinwiddie will also be facing familiar faces on Tuesday night.
Finney-Smith played in Dallas for seven seasons before he was traded to Brooklyn in 2022 while Dinwiddie was there for 2 ¹/₂ seasons.
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