Kyrie Irving did not play -- let alone attend -- at TD Garden in Boston, where the Nets suffered Wednesday's 121-110 loss to the Celtics, but the crowd of 19,156 let their feelings be known about the team's former star point guard as they booed throughout the night.

Irving missed his seventh straight game as he recovers from a right shoulder impingement, but Celtics fans still chanted "Kyrie sucks" among other actions to share their thoughts on the former Boston star, who spurned the team for the Nets after two years from 2017-19.

But one of Irving's former teammates, Celtics guard Jaylen Brown, believes that the fans should focus less on frustrations from the past two seasons and instead pay attention to Boston's strong start.

"I think the media has made it much bigger than what it actually is and things like that, and it's almost makes it like you're opposed, like in turns, one against one another, right?" Brown said after the game. "I don't think it's that big of a deal. I think that everything worked out for the better for everybody, so I don't think anybody in Boston should have anything to complain or boo about, to be honest. I think we're winning, playing good basketball. The Celtics look good. Boston fans should be nothing but happy. I think the energy should shift from that to being more positive."

Irving's replacement with the Celtics, guard Kemba Walker, dropped a game-high 39 points to carry Boston past the Nets (9-9) late in the second half.

The Nets and Celtics face each other again Friday at noon from Barclays Center in New York. It is unclear if Irving, who does not have a timetable for a return, will play.

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