NBA commissioner Adam Silver has weighed in on the Kyrie Irving saga, stating he hopes the Brooklyn Nets guard gets vaccinated as he would love to see him play in the coming season.
The 2021/22 season starts on Tuesday and, speaking to reporters ahead of opening night, Silver said the decision taken by cities such as New York is “perfectly appropriate” and a “responsible public health decision,” per The Athletic.
Speaking on Irving, he said:
“I hope that Kyrie, despite how strongly he feels about the vaccination, ultimately decides to get vaccinated because I’d love to see him play basketball this season.”
The guard has so far refused to take the vaccine and went into detail over it on Instagram Live last week.
“This is my life,” he said. “I get to do whatever I want with this, this is one body that I get here. And you are telling me what to do with my body. This has everything to do with what is going on in our world. And I am being grouped into something that is bigger than just the game of basketball.”
Irving will not be allowed to play this season unless he gets vaccinated, with the Nets unwilling to facilitate him as a part-time player.
