Brooklyn Nets star and anti-vaxxer Kyrie Irving got quite the 30th-birthday present when Politico reported that New York City mayor Eric Adams intends to announce on Thursday that the vaccine mandate for performers and athletes will be lifted by April 4.
With the NBA playoffs starting the week of April 15, it’s perfect timing for the Nets, who have a losing record at home largely because Irving has been absent due to his refusal to get vaccinated. It’s probably also good news for Yankees and Mets fans, with home openers scheduled for April 7 and April 15, respectively. While Major League Baseball as a whole has vaccination rates well above 90 percent, both teams have players who have been hesitant to say whether they have gotten the shot.
“As we stated, the name of the game is that we’re not going to be heavy-handed with the private-sector mandate,” Adams told reporters at a press conference Wednesday. “We’re not going to run around the buildings and check vaccine cards.”
If Adams does rescind the citywide mandate for performers and athletes that has kept Irving off the court at Barclays this season, he may still have to sit out an away game this postseason. With ten games left in the regular season, the Nets are in eighth place, trailing the Toronto Raptors by two games. If the standings remain the same, it’s likely the teams will face off in the play-in tournament. The Raptors will have home-court advantage, meaning the unvaccinated guard will not be able to travel to Canada for the game.
