Celts' Brown: I don't endorse Barclays protesters

CHICAGO -- Boston Celtics defender Jaylen Brown said helium does not endorse the radical of protesters who lined up Sunday extracurricular of Barclays Center earlier Kyrie Irving's return from suspension, reiterating that helium was blessed to spot enactment for the Brooklyn Nets' defender getting to play again.

Members of Israel United successful Christ, which has been designated a hatred radical by the Southern Poverty Law Center, handed retired flyers earlier Sunday's crippled that read: "The Truth About Anti-Semitism" and "The Truth astir Slavery."

Brown said Monday that helium did not recognize the group's connection erstwhile helium retweeted a video of the radical with the caption "Energy."

"I saw a ample radical of our radical from our assemblage showing enactment for [Kyrie] and his return," Brown said Monday. "Me being arrogant of that enactment and being arrogant of our assemblage for doing that does not mean I endorse oregon observe immoderate of the things that were being done oregon being said.

"My instinct erstwhile I saw this was I didn't announcement which radical it was. I conscionable noticed the support, and that's what I commented on. I reemphasize that I don't deliberation that everything that is said oregon being done oregon being said is thing I endorse oregon represent."

Brown attempted to clarify his archetypal tweet with a follow-up Sunday nighttime that helium believed it was the Omega Psi Phi fraternity showing enactment for Irving and said helium did not see taking down his archetypal tweet due to the fact that it would beryllium removing his enactment for Irving and his return.

Brown said helium simply wanted to beforehand "Brown and Black radical lasting unneurotic connected our issues alternatively than seeing images of unit successful our media, euphony and movies that we don't wholly beforehand oregon nett from."

Brown, who similar Irving is 1 of the vice presidents of the National Basketball Players Association, has been captious of Nets proprietor Joe Tsai for the mode the enactment handled Irving's suspension, which lasted 8 games for what the squad termed the "harmful interaction of his conduct" relating to societal media posts astir a publication and movie that contained antisemitic themes.

Brown has voiced his discomfort with the presumption the Nets laid retired for Irving successful bid to instrumentality to the court.

"I've been successful interaction arsenic a national member, arsenic a erstwhile teammate conscionable to amusement enactment for the concern that [Irving's] been going through," Brown said. "Being exiled from the game, of course, emotionally is simply a batch connected our league, but it's a batch connected everyone who's a instrumentality of this game.

"Kyrie's contributed successful a batch of ways to the crippled of basketball, truthful for him to beryllium capable to travel backmost and beryllium connected the level past night, I thought was thing to celebrate. I thought that was thing to support. The NBA, the Brooklyn Nets decided immoderate the disagreements were oregon the interest was, was evidently handled and we were moving on. I was supporting that decision."