Lakers' LeBron James: Kyrie Irving 'Caused Some Harm' Promoting Antisemitic Movie

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James said former teammate Kyrie Irving "caused some harm to a lot of people" with his promotion of an antisemitic film.

"He caused some harm, and I think it's unfortunate," James told reporters Friday. "But I don't stand on the position to harm people when it comes to your voice or your platform or anything. So it doesn't matter what color your skin is, how tall you are, what position you're in. If you are promoting or soliciting or saying harmful things to any community that harms people, then I don't respect it."

He added: "I don't condone any hate to any kind. To any race. To Jewish communities, to Black communities, to Asian communities. You guys know where I stand."

James and Irving, who currently plays for the Brooklyn Nets, spent three seasons as teammates with the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2014 through 2017.

The Nets announced Thursday they'd given Irving an indefinite suspension of at least five games for his "failure to disavow antisemitism."

Their decision came after the seven-time NBA All-Star wouldn't directly answer questions about whether he held any antisemitic beliefs in reference to a tweet he posted linking to the film:

Anti-Defamation League CEO and National Director Jonathan Greenblatt tweeted the film contains "deeply antisemitic themes." Jon Blistein of Rolling Stone reported the film claims "Jewish slave ships that brought our West African negro or Bantu ancestors to slave ports owned by [Jews]."

While it has been acknowledged that some Jewish people were involved in slavery, the allegation that Jews were the driving force of slavery has been widely debunked.

After being suspended, Irving posted a statement on Instagram, saying he had "no intentions to disrespect any Jewish cultural history regarding the Holocaust or perpetuate any hate."

"To all Jewish families and communities that are hurt and affected from my post, I am deeply sorry to have caused you pain, and I apologize," Irving wrote. "I initially reacted out of emotion to being unjustly labeled antisemitic, instead of focusing on the healing process of my Jewish Brothers and Sisters that were hurt from the hateful remarks made in the documentary."

Nets general manager Sean Marks said the apology "a step in the right direction," but noted the point guard will be asked to speak with Jewish community leaders before he's allowed to rejoin the team.

"[Irving's] going to have to sit down with them, he's going to have to sit down with the organization after this," Marks told reporters. "We will evaluate and see if this is the right opportunity to bring him back."

The 30-year-old guard served the first game of his suspension Friday night as the Nets scored a 128-86 road win over the Washington Wizards.

He'll be first eligible to return for a Nov. 13 game against the Los Angeles Lakers.