Overview

• On June 10 Irving used a Twitch stream to demand an end to memes mocking Towns, warning he would retaliate online against repeat offenders.
• He highlighted that trolls targeted Towns for his Dominican, Black background rooted in his New Jersey upbringing, urging respect for his culture.
• Trolling intensified after Towns’s uneven performance in the playoffs contributed to the Knicks’ loss in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
• Earlier this month Gilbert Arenas drew backlash for mocking Towns’s physique on his podcast, describing him as “built like a girl.”
• Irving remains sidelined after April ACL surgery and holds a $43 million player option for 2025-26 with a potential return by January 2026.