Silver ‘hopeful’ Nets Guard Kyrie Irving Receives Vaccine

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver says he is ‘hopeful’ Nets guard Kyrie Irving receive the COVID-19 vaccination to play this season.

Silver spoke to reporters on the eve of the 2021-22 during a virtual media availability session. He spoke about numerous things for the upcoming season as well as one of the hottest topics in sports: Irving and his stance against the vaccine.

Silver went on to say, “It's perfectly appropriate that New York and other cities have passed laws that require people who both work and visit arenas to be vaccinated...Frankly 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, and I'd love to see the Brooklyn Nets have their full complement of players on the floor.”

He later said that he “preferred” that the NBA Players Association had agreed to mandatory vaccinations, which Irving is against.

The Nets star explained on Instagram Live last week his reasoning for not getting the vaccine:

"This is my life," Irving 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."

Nets open the season tomorrow night without Irving in a rematch against the defending champion Bucks on TNT.