The Brooklyn Nets are prohibiting all-star guard Kyrie Irving from playing or practicing with the team until he gets injected with the Covid-19 shots. This follows reports that he would not be able to play home games due to vaccine mandates in New York City.
According to The Post Millennial:
Irving has refused to get vaccinated thus far, and as such, the Nets announced that he is no longer on the team until he does so. Irving won’t be permitted to practice with the team or play games, according to the New York Post.
The team has gone so far as to refuse to allow him to play in away games, though he would be permitted by those municipalities to do so. New York City has a strict vaccine mandate, where people must show proof of vaccination to enter sports and entertainment facilities, along with hundreds of other venues, such as as restaurants, bars, and gyms.
A statement from the Nets reads:
“Given the evolving nature of the situation and after thorough deliberation, we have decided Kyrie Irving will not play or practice with the team until he is eligible to be a full participant.”
“Kyrie has made a personal choice, and we respect his individual right to choose. Currently the choice restricts his ability to be a full-time member of the team, and we will not permit any member of our team to participate with part-time availability,” team management said.
“It is imperative,” they went on to say, “that we continue to build chemistry as a team and remain true to our long-established values of togetherness and sacrifice. Our championship goals for the season have not changed, and to achieve these goals each member of our organization must pull in the same direction. We are excited for the start of the season and look forward to a successful campaign that will make the borough of Brooklyn proud.”
Kyrie Irving’s courage will be tested. Does he have the resolve to sit out the season, perhaps ending his career, over his personal beliefs? Can he wait out the vaccine mandates until science and logic demonstrate they make no sense? I hope so.
