Kyrie Irving and the Brooklyn Nets are going through an unprecedented situation right now. For the first time in NBA history, a player is only allowed to play on the road, as Irving refuses to take the COVID-19 vaccine.
Irving, who claims not to be anti-vaxx, alleges to be the voice of the voiceless. He's protesting New York's vaccine mandate and states that nothing will make him change his mind.
Irving Doesn't Feel Guilty
Irving's status as a part-time player reportedly drove James Harden away from the Nets. Moreover, the fact that Kevin Durant is out with an injury and he still refuses to get the shot has made some wonder whether he's actually committed to the team. Even so, he claims he doesn't feel guilty about that choice:
“There’s no guilt that I feel," Irving said, per NBC Sports. "I’m the only player that has to deal with this in New York City because I play there. If I was anywhere else in another city then it probably wouldn’t be the same circumstances. But because I’m there, we have Eric Adams, we have the New York mandate, we have things going on that are real-life circumstances that are not just affecting me, bro. So you ask me these questions, I don’t feel guilt.”He Says It's Been Hard At Times
But even if he feels no guilt or regrets, he admits that it hasn't always been easy for him to deal with all the jokes and mockery about his situation:
"This hasn’t been easy for anybody," the guard said, as quoted by Fadeaway World. "I think the more that you guys keep hammering in on this, and then also in public spaces, I’m noticing that people like to make jokes about what’s going on, in ‘half-game’ or ‘half-man,’ whatever it is. My family has to see some of that stuff; my teammates have to see some of that."'I Don't Play This Media Games,' Says Irving
Irving is trying his best to shut down all the outside noise and focus on helping his team when he's on the court. Needless to say, that may not be enough:
"And like I said, that outside noise creeps in at times, but it doesn’t impact me because I’m used to this," Irving concluded. "I don’t play these media games. I don’t do this. This is part of my job, but this is not what I signed up for in order to be going back and forth, answering questions about my personal emotions. All I’m doing is trying to be the best teammate, doing my job at a high level. I wish that circumstances were different. But obviously, it’s impacting a lot of people, and I didn’t want this to happen. But it is the reality."The playoffs are just around the corner and the Nets will most definitely need Kyrie all the time, so we'll see how they deal with this situation.
]]>The Inquisitr
