There have been a lot of eyes on the Brooklyn Nets as training camp got underway. They are going to garner a lot of attention as one of the favorites to win the NBA Championship this season. But, now people are watching to see when Kyrie Irving will be present.
Irving was not present for the Nets’ media day as he is currently not allowed to partake in any indoor events in New York City. He has not outright said that he is unvaccinated, but New York mandates state that you need to be vaccinated for COVID-19 to take part in indoor events in the city.
Irving’s absence leads people to believe that he remains unvaccinated. There are other players in the league unvaccinated, such as Bradley Beal of the Washington Wizards and Jonathan Isaac of the Orlando Magic. But, their team’s cities do not have mandates in place such as New York.
San Francisco is the only other city currently in the NBA with such a mandate in place. The Golden State Warriors were being directly impacted by it, as Andrew Wiggins remained unvaccinated at the beginning of training camp
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Wiggins has since changed course. He received his vaccination and is now eligible for all events that the Warriors have. The same cannot be said for Kyrie Irving, who did not attend Nets’ practice today and remains ineligible, according to sources.
As things currently stand, Irving is set to miss every Nets home game this season. That would be at least 41 regular-season games and he would forfeit nearly $15 million in salary if he remains unvaccinated and ineligible to play.
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This is something to keep an eye on, as Irving is an integral part of the Brooklyn Nets’ plans for this season. Having Kevin Durant and James Harden on the team should be enough to contend for a championship, but filling in for Kyrie Irving half of the season is easier said than done.
