When it came to Kyrie Irving forcing his way out of Brooklyn, the now former Net said he wanted to be somewhere he felt “celebrated” rather than “tolerated.” 

“I just know I wanna be places where I’m celebrated and not just tolerated or just dealt with in a way that doesn’t make me feel respected,” Irving said Tuesday, meeting with the media for the first time since being traded to the Mavericks on Sunday. 

“There were times throughout this process when I was in Brooklyn where I felt very disrespected. 

“I work extremely hard at what I do. No one ever talks about my work ethic, though. Everyone talks about what I’m doing off the floor.” 

But off the floor is where Irving got himself into hot water time and again. Be it with his refusal to get the COVID-19 vaccine, which meant he wasn’t available for 35 Nets home games last season, or with his endorsement of an anti-Semitic film this season followed by an obstinance toward an apology, all of which ultimately led to an eight-game suspension without pay. There was acrimony over contract negotiations, too. 

Yet when asked what specifically the Nets did to make him feel the way he did, Irving declined to expound on specifics. 

“That’s another day where I could really go into detail about it,” he said. “I’m not the person to really speak on names and go to someone behind their back and try to leak stuff to the media. That’s never been me.” 

He also didn’t delve into his own role in the events that led to his departure, either. 

But the Nets ultimately decided they’d had enough and that Irving wasn’t worth the trouble, despite his enormous talents on the floor that included his averaging 27.1 points, 5.3 assists and 5.1 rebounds this season. After Irving demanded last week to be dealt by Thursday’s NBA trade deadline or he’d walk in free agency this summer, Brooklyn shipped the eight-time All-Star, along with veteran big man Markieff Morris, to the Mavericks for guard Spencer Dinwiddie, forward Dorian Finney-Smith, an unprotected 2029 first-round pick and 2027 and 2029 second-rounders. 

Irving’s three-plus-year Nets career lasted just 143 out of a possible 278 games. 

Now, he’ll be tasked with trying to spark a Dallas team that was just three games above .500 and fifth in the West entering Tuesday night. 

Irving added that while he didn’t feel Brooklyn respected him, he said he doesn’t hold anything against anyone there. He cited close relationships he said he still maintains with people from previous stops in Cleveland and Boston, though it’s notable that his time in both of those cities had ugly endings as well. 

“I need healthy boundaries,” Irving said. “There’s a lot of disrespect that goes on with people’s families, with their names. … It’s nothing personal against any of those guys in the front office, it’s just what I’m willing to accept.” 

Now he’s the Mavericks’ problem, or — in their eyes — the solution. 

“You can’t ask for a better situation,” Dallas head coach Jason Kidd said of adding Irving to a lineup that includes superstar Luka Doncic. “We feel that getting him is going to help put us in a position to win a championship.” 

Kevin Durant and the Nets once felt that way, too.