Shortly after playing in his first NBA game in nearly 20 months due to injury, Kyrie Irving talked about his friendship with Houston Texans' captain Azeez Al-Shaair and his offer to pay the linebacker's fine from the NFL.
"Azeez is a friend of mine," Irving said shortly after the Houston Rockets beat his Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday at Toyota Center. "He's a brother that I consider in this revolution that a lot of this generation is building."
Al-Shaair and Irving have both been vocal in their support for Palestine during the conflict in Gaza.
Al-Shaair was fined by the NFL for displaying the name Hind Rajab on his eye black during the Texans' season-opening loss in September. A week later, he was fined again when he wore the name Wafaa Akila on the black tape underneath his eyes during a loss to the Bengals. Rajab was a 5-year-old Palestinian girl killed during the Gaza war in 2024. Rajab was fleeing Gaza City with her family when their vehicle was attacked. While her uncle, aunt and cousins died, Rajab initially survived and was on the phone for hours with paramedics seeking rescue before she eventually died as well. Akila was an 8-year-old who who was killed during an Israeli airstrike while she was on her way to her first day of school in Gaza City earlier this year.
When asked by ESPN's DJ Bien-Aime about his support for Al-Shaair, Irving praised his friend for his actions.
"It's a selfless act when you can show up for others that don't necessarily have a voice for themselves," he said. "I would assume that most of us know what is happening around the world globally, and it's a lot of innocent people that are losing their lives, children, especially. Anytime there's a war or conflict, there's going to be unfortunate deaths and murders going on. And us here in America, we get the luxury of going to bed at night in our nice bedrooms and things paid for. But when our tax dollars are going towards things that we don't necessarily agree with, then you have to stand up. I think small instances of revolutionary acts like wearing people's names or wearing a child's name like Hind Rajab on your face and taking the fine and stepping up to the plate, it just shows how much you're an unselfish person, how much you're willing to sacrifice. This mission is bigger than just me and Azeez, we know that, but our strength is in our solidarity and how connected we are and how united we are in our efforts."
#Mavs guard Kyrie Irving was asked about his offer to pay the $11,941 fine of Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair, who wrote the name of a Palestinian girl killed in Gaza on his eye black. "He's a friend of mine. He's a brother that I consider in this revolution that a lot of this generation is building. It's a selfless act when you can show up for others that don't necessarily have a voice for themselves. I believe some of that most of us know is happening around the world globally. And it's a lot of innocent people that are losing their lives and children, especially. Anytime there's a war or conflict, there's going to be unfortunate deaths and murders going on. And us here in America, we get the luxury of going to bed at night and have nice bedrooms and things paid for."
- Ron Harrod Jr. (@RonKnowsSports) October 22, 2026
The 34-year-old Irving, who had 15 points in 24 minutes in his first game back since tearing his ACL in 2025, hasn't been as outspoken publicly about political issues as he was earlier in his career, but he appeared at last season's All-Star Game wearing a "PRESS" shirt, which was made to raise awareness of what is happening in the Middle East. He's also worn a chain featuring the Palestinian flag.
"It's a bigger conversation but anytime you bring in political conversations into basketball, it does get muddy," Irving said. "So, I try my best to do the work in silence and stand with people that are actually not afraid to stand with me."
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There’s more to Houston with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at Mavericks' Kyrie Irving speaks on friendship with Texans' Azeez Al-Shaair, explains why he paid fine.