Kyrie Irving Hit with $400k Lawsuit

NBA player Kyrie Irving accused of owing $400k for unpaid wellness services...

From MSN

A celebrity therapist hired by Dallas Mavericks point guard Kyrie Irving to facilitate wellness workshops at a family retreat he hosted claims the eight-time NBA All-Star is now refusing to pay for her services — which included additional counseling after one attendee died unexpectedly during the event.

Social worker Natasha McCartney provided, among other things, guided meditation sessions, ionic foot baths, and “intuitive life readings” to Irving and his relatives at a five-day gathering in North Dakota last summer, according to a lawsuit filed in New York State Supreme Court and obtained by The Independent. When she was forced to pivot quickly to crisis intervention and grief counseling, McCartney’s suit says she went above and beyond, acting as a liaison between police and the family, making arrangements with the coroner, and “promptly facilitat[ing] the removal of Kyrie from the scene to avoid media exposure.”

However, some five months later, Irving, who is earning a salary of $40 million for the 2024-2025 season, continues to withhold the nearly $400,000 he owes McCartney, the lawsuit alleges. It accuses Irving of breach of contract, unjust enrichment, and fraud, and seeks payment in full, plus interest, costs, and attorneys’ fees.

Irving’s attorney, Steven Olenick, did not respond to a request for comment on Monday. Attorney Michael Faragalla, who is representing McCartney, told The Independent that the dispute between McCartney and Irving “had nothing to do with the work she performed.”

“After making direct contact with Kyrie Irving and his associates, Mr. Irving put it all off on his supporting cast,” Faragalla said on Monday afternoon. “He even failed to pick up the phone and call Natasha McCartney, so he didn’t make any effort to resolve [the situation] prior to the actual filing [of the lawsuit]. Of course, he had an attorney retained, and of course, his manager and his agent got involved and made several insulting offers, but Kyrie Irving himself never personally tried to make amends.”