Kyrie Irving feels no guilt about his vaccination status
Nets guard Kyrie Irving waits for play to resume during the first half of the team's NBA basketball game against the San Antonio Spurs, Friday, Jan. 21, 2022, in San Antonio. Credit: AP/Eric Gay
It’s not going to get easier for the Nets.
After losing their 11th straight game Saturday night in Miami, they head into a four-game stretch in which their one remaining healthy superstar will not be able to play.
Kyrie Irving, who cannot play in New York because of the local mandate governing his unvaccinated status, will not play again until Feb. 26 in Milwaukee. He will miss three games at Barclays Center and one against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
Irving will be watching the games from his home in New Jersey. After telling reporters how much he wishes he could join his teammates at home, he was asked on Saturday night if he feels guilt about the fact that he can’t.
"There’s no guilt that I feel," he said. "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 [New York City mayor] 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.
"I’m just living my life as best I can just like everybody else that missed these last two years. I didn’t have a plan in place while all this was going on, didn’t know. The NBA and the NBPA made it very clear that there would be things that I would be able to do to work around this. And that’s off the table. So you tell me if I’m just alone out here or do I have support from everybody else that’s dealing with the same thing?"
Nets general manager Sean Marks and Irving recently said they are hopeful that local laws will change and that Irving will be able to play full-time. As it stands, he can play in only eight of the 26 remaining regular-season games. The Nets have a home-heavy schedule plus one game in Toronto, where he is required to be vaccinated, and two at Madison Square Garden.
The Nets (29-27) began the season as a championship contender and as recently as Jan. 21 were in first place in the Eastern Conference. They have fallen into eighth place, a play-in position, and are in danger of dropping further.
The Nets can’t seem to find a way to win without Kevin Durant, who hasn’t played since spraining his MCL on Jan. 17 against New Orleans. They are 2-12 since that game.
Durant said his rehab is going well, and the Nets hope he can return shortly after the All-Star break. Irving is looking forward to playing with him again.
"It will look good when we see some more pieces out there," Irving said. "With that being said, I still wish I could be out there at home. And some people say it’s as simple as, ‘Hey, go get this, go get the shot.’ No, it’s not as simple as that for me in my life, but ultimately still praying for a better outcome."
Barbara Barker is an award-winning columnist and features writer in the sports department at Newsday. She has covered sports in New York for more than 20 years.
