Nets GM Sean Marks let it be known on Tuesday that not every player on the Nets has been vaccinated, which means certain players could be forced to miss home games at the Barclays Center due to local regulations. Marks said he is confident, however, that the team will be fully prepared when the season starts:
“Regarding if they could play today, I can’t comment on who could play and so forth. There would obviously be a couple people missing from that picture. I won’t get into who it is, but we feel confident in the following several days before camp everybody would be allowed to participate.”
According to Yaron Weitzman of Fox Sports, Kyrie Irving has not been vaccinated yet and this puts him in danger of not playing in 41 home games. As announced earlier this month, local government policies – which are being honored by the NBA in New York City and San Francisco, affecting three teams – are requiring all players to be vaccinated in order to play in home games in New York.
Of course, Irving is a vital piece to the Nets’ success this year. Last season, he averaged 26.9 PPG to go with 6 APG. Irving also shot it at a career-high of 50% from the field. If Irving indeed is not vaccinated, the Nets could survive the regular season if he were to miss an extended stretch – but he would certainly be required during the playoff push.
This post originally appeared on Nets Wire.
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