SUMMARY
- Kyrie Irving recently spoke about the potential ban of TikTok in the United States.
- The application risks facing a ban in the country over fears of data leaks.
Kyrie Irving remains one of the most popular athletes of our generation and it’s with good reason. The way Irving plays on the court has earned him millions of fans worldwide. But how he reacts to issues off the court has also earned him plenty of attention, and a bad reputation at times too. It is no secret that Kyrie has voiced his opinion in the past regarding significant political issues. In addition to that, his views have landed him in trouble as well.
For those who don’t know, Kyrie made an anti-Semitic tweet in the past, one that earned him a ban from the NBA when he was with the Brooklyn Nets. It took a lot for Kyrie and Joe Tsai to work their way back, and he was eventually offloaded to the Dallas Mavericks. Since that incident, Kyrie has been fairly careful with his choice of words, until recently when he sent a cryptic message.
Before Game 2 of the Los Angeles Clippers vs Dallas Mavericks series, Kyrie was asked about the potential ban of TikTok in the United States when he was walking to the Crypto.com Arena.
“Read between the lines, it’s a bigger reason why they trying to do that”
Kyrie Irving weighs in on on potential TikTok ban in the United States 👀
(Via @ joy.of.everything/TikTok) #KyrieIrving #TikTok #TikTokBan pic.twitter.com/7y5uhBG91G
— Sportsmanor (@sports_manor) April 24, 2024
He said, “Read between the lines, it’s a bigger reason why they trying to do that.” It certainly looks like the player believes that there is another reason for the United States government to pass a nationwide ban for the application, than the one that was already revealed to the country’s citizens.
Why may TikTok be banned in the United States?
For those who don’t know, TikTok has already been banned in several countries, including India, Belgium, France, and New Zealand. The main reason for this would be that governments fear that user data could be leaked by the company that owns TikTok, which is a Chinese organization that goes by the name ByteDance.
The US Senate has passed the bill that will ban TikTok unless its owner, ByteDance, agrees to sell the platform pic.twitter.com/aO9ofDNlW6
— Dexerto (@Dexerto) April 24, 2024
The United States has one of the largest numbers of users of the app, around 150 million as of January 2024. In April 2024, the US Senate approved a bill stating that ByteDance has nine months to sell its stake in the application, or it would face a nationwide ban. The decision to potentially ban the app has received mixed reactions, as many have pointed out that TikTok promotes freedom of speech.
Kyrie Irving is the only athlete so far to comment on the controversy, and he has raised questions about it as well. With that said, only time will tell how this plays out for the concerned parties in the United States.