Conspiracy theories range from the amusing to the outright bizarre. There is one NBA All-Star believes in one of the more far-fetched theories.
The Earth is round. That seems easily apparent as night and day. This has been taught to us as basic scientific fact. It has not always been the case, but since the hypothesis that the Earth is flat has been disproven, we have typecast believers in this theory as people who deviate from the mainstream. Probably not an NBA superstar who went to Duke University.
Here are his complete comments on a podcast with Cleveland Cavaliers' teammates Richard Jefferson and Channing Frye. (h/t NBC)
"This is not even a conspiracy.
The Earth is flat. The Earth is flat. The Earth is flat.
All these things that particular groups - I won't even pinpoint one group - that they almost offer up this education. The fact that, in our lifetimes, that there are so many holes in so many pockets in our history," Irving declared.
Now here's his conspiracy-esque take. "There is this history. I don't want to dictate it to one race, dictate it to any one particular type of people or anything like that. History is history, and it's happened long before us, and it's going to happen after us. And it always repeats itself somehow, in some way. All these things that they keep giving to us.
I'm just saying that these things that ultimately used to put me in fear, and this thing used to be like, 'Aw, man.' It makes you not want to question it, naturally. Because of how much information you can actually figure out and how much information there actually is out there. It's crazy. Anything that you have a particular question on - OK, is the world flat? Is the Earth flat or round? I think you need to do research on it.
It's right in front of our faces. I'm telling you, it's right in front of our faces. They lie to us."
He concluded: "For what I've known for as many years and what I've come to believe, what I've been taught is that the Earth is round. But I mean, if you really think about it from a landscape of the way we travel, the way we move, and the fact that, can you really think of us rotating around the sun and all planets aligned rotating in specific dates being perpendicular with what's going on with these planets?
Everything that they send or they want to say they're sending doesn't come back. It doesn't come back. There is no concrete information except for the information that they're giving us. They're particularly putting you in the direction of what to believe and what not to believe. And the truth is right there. You've just go to go searching for it. I've been searching for it for a while."
His contention is that believing that Earth is round was "forced" on us but we should know better when we observe.
Now there are those who hope that this is sarcasm, or a joke. The podcast was not exactly serious in tone. A follow up post on NBC by Dan Feldman, who talked to Irving about it, takes away that hope. When asked if he really believes that the Earth is flat.
"Yeah, I do," Irving said.
"No, I don't believe the Earth is round."
But how?
"I think about it from just a, not even a scientific way, but the way I travel and how I get around and also the tons and tons of research that supports that theory," Irving said. "I think you should go look it up. Before I tell you, I think you should go look it up."
Irving was actually surprised that it caused a stir."That's a big deal, huh?" Irving said. "That's a big deal?"
Irving did say it's "funny" and "hilarious" and he encourages us to discern it ourselves.
"I'm telling you, go research it," Irving said. "I'm telling you, you'll have fun with it. I promise you that."
"I'm sure it's fun," Feldman replied. "I just don't think it's real."
"That's what I'm saying," Irving said.
Well, despite the outball take, his talent is what matters. Jimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls, on ESPN's First Take chose Kyrie as the player he wanted to play with if he can choose any player in the NBA. (NBC still had this one)
"I'd probably have to go with my favorite player who is not myself, and that's Kyrie [Irving]. I love Kyrie's game, man. And he's a really good dude," said Butler.
Uncle Drew's hot take stole the show from the rest of his fellow All-Stars but it's better that he be remembered for his ankle breakers and clutch plays.