Saturday, December 18, 2021
Irving right back apart
Vaccination opponents back in the NBA – for a few hours
The Brooklyn Nets have been without superstar Kyrie Irving for more than two months. He is not vaccinated and is therefore not allowed to play games in New York. Due to many failures, the NBA club changes its mind and brings Irving back to the team. A few hours later, however, it ends up on the Covid list.
Vaccination skeptic Kyrie Irving is said to be playing again for the Brooklyn Nets in the professional basketball league NBA, but immediately landed on the Covid list. “After talking to our players, our coaches and our staff, we decided to bring Kyrie back for games and training sessions where he could be used,” said Sean Marks, general manager of the Nets. In the evening, like superstar Kevin Durant, he had to be separated again.
As a professional who has not been vaccinated against the corona virus, Irving will no longer take part in home games or games at city rivals New York Knicks due to regulations in New York, and the Guard cannot be used in Toronto, Canada. There it applies that unvaccinated people are not allowed to enter the halls. But participation in 24 of the 27 remaining away games would be possible – of course only without being on the Covid list.
In October, the Nets had announced that Irving would not be back in the squad until he was fully operational. Well, after more than two months, but the rethinking: “We believe that Kyrie will not only make us better as a team, but also allow us to optimally balance the stresses of our players,” said the statement. The decision was made “in view of the current circumstances” and with the full support of teammates.
Brooklyn is the front runner in the Eastern Conference (21: 8 wins), but currently has to do without numerous players due to Corona problems. Now the already ailing top scorer Durant (ankle injury) is on the Covid list, as the team announced before the game against Orlando Magic. Both have either tested positive or are considered contacts.
According to US media reports, Irving has to show a negative test for five days in a row before returning to training. Even afterwards, a daily test obligation applies to him.