Despite mesmerizing fans with his basketball skills, Kyrie Irving is one of the most polarizing figures in the NBA because of his off-court activities. After getting suspended for his anti-Semitic statements in the initial part of this season, he faced several setbacks off the court. Notably, he lost out on $11 million due to this. The 31-year-old again found himself at the mercy of fans, as they expressed mixed signals on the star’s recent picture with a Chinese product.

Irving also faced the wrath of fans after his surprise exit from the Brooklyn Nets. Subsequently, it left his former teammate, Kevin Durant, with no other option left other than exiting the Nets as well. Despite trying his luck in various cities, he couldn’t become a fan favorite in either Boston or Brooklyn.

Kyrie Irving has moved on from Nike

The aftermath of Kyrie Irving’s controversial statements forced Nike to terminate its contract with him. In addition, the termination resulted in a reported loss of $11 million annually for the 8x NBA All-Star. Following the incident, Irving played without a sneaker sponsor and covered the brand’s logo on his sneakers whenever he stepped on the court.

Meanwhile, months after the Nike episode, Irving’s picture sporting sneakers from the Chinese brand Anta went viral among hoop fans. The image of Uncle Drew stepping on a basketball with his new Anta kicks grabbed a lot of eyeballs on Twitter.

The Mavs star isn’t new to making headlines because of his kicks. During the 2023 NBA All-Star game, he sported custom handmade sneakers for a brief moment in the game. Fans still found a way to slam the star’s hidden message with his uncanny sneakers. The new Anta kicks, however, received several positive takes from fans in a surprise turn of events.

Fans send out mixed signals for Irving’s new kicks

After the image surfaced on Twitter, fans flooded in with a lot of positive opinions on the star’s new kicks. One user wrote, “These actually hard. Y’all going to say they not cause it’s not Nike but different color ways gonna make the shoe pop.” Here are some reactions from fans.

However, everyone wasn’t of the same opinion as they continued bashing Kyrie. One user said, “He should honestly keep covering the logo. Those are the best on-court kicks.” 

While there isn’t any confirmation on whether Irving signed a deal with the Chinese brand, several fans expect the star to make it official soon. What do you make of Kyrie Irving’s new kicks? Will it fetch him the same success that Nike kicks gave him? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

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