(AP Photo/Blake Nicholson)
FORT YATES, N.D. (AP) — Boston Celtics star Kyrie Irving has officially become a member of the Standing Rock Sioux.
Irving and his older sister, Asia Irving, took part Thursday in a traditional Native American ceremony recognizing their tribal heritage and support for the tribe’s long battle against the Dakota Access oil pipeline. They were honored with Lakota names during a ritual in a packed auditorium that tribal spokeswoman Danielle Finn said “is a very special rite of passage for a Lakota person.”
Tribal Chairman Mike Faith said: “We’re welcoming home two of our own.”
The Irvings’ late mother, Elizabeth Ann Larson, was a member of the tribe and lived on the reservation until her adoption at a young age.
Kyrie Irving, who won an NBA championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016, was born in Australia and he grew up in New Jersey.
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