Did Kyrie Irving Really Just Compare Himself To Martin Luther King?

Kyrie Irving said something stupid again. Shocking, we know.

Speaking at Monday’s Brooklyn Nets practice, Irving offered one of his usual diatribes about fans and media obsessing over athletes and treating sports like entertainment — blah, blah blah. Per usual, Irving feels like he has been subjected to unfair treatment, or something.

This time, however, Irving actually found a way to compare himself to Martin Luther King Jr. — on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, no less.

Check this out:

(You can click here to watch video of Irving’s media availability.)

“When I was out for those seven weeks and not saying anything and still people are still saying things about me,” Irving said, via YES Network. “It’s inevitable. They crucified Martin Luther King for speaking about peace and social integration.“

Now, we won’t deny that Irving is one of the most criticized players in the NBA. And, regardless of how much of the criticism he has brought upon himself, it’s not easy to deal with seemingly everybody ripping you all of the time.

But we’re not sure the scrutiny that Irving — an extremely rich man paid to play basketball — has been subjected to rivals what Martin Luther King (who was assassinated!) dealt with. Furthermore, what drives people to consistently talk about pro athletes really isn’t comparable to what drove people to obsess about King. Getting caught up in the reality TV-ification of professional sports is a little bit different than being outraged over idea of African Americans fighting for their rights.

But hey, Kyrie gonna Kyrie.