Kyrie Irving issues strong response to his low ESPN ranking

Mar 5, 2023; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (2) in action during the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Phoenix Suns at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Kyrie Irving appears to be pretty mad online over his poor ESPN ranking this year.

The Dallas Mavericks star Irving was somewhat stunningly low on ESPN’s annual list of the top 100 players in the NBA. Irving was positioned at No. 34 on the list (though that was just one spot lower than his No. 33 ranking by ESPN last year).

In an Instagram comment on Wednesday, Irving fired back at ESPN with a strong response.

“Who. TF. cares,” wrote Irving. “I never will. Rankings don’t mean a damn thing, especially not from ESPN or any of these other media platforms. Majority of the analysts are not credible sources in my eyes and I don’t respect them or their opinions.”

Here is a screenshot of Irving’s mini-rant.

Kyrie responds to his ESPN ranking. 🗣️

(h/t @kyriecenterig) pic.twitter.com/vWWUyCwW8c

— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) October 11, 2023

While these rankings are inherently subjective and meant to stir up debate and reactions, the eight-time All-Star Irving does have a good case for being under-ranked. He was a steady 27-5-6 guy for the Mavericks last season and shot a rock-solid 51.0 percent from the field (though Dallas did finish 38-44, missing the play-in tournament).

Irving isn’t the first NBA player to take exception to his ESPN ranking (and certainly won’t be the last). But for a guy who really dislikes the mass media, of course Irving was going to take that one pretty personally.