The Brooklyn Nets join the New York Knicks and Golden State Warriors as three NBA teams who could be impacted by local vaccine mandates for large indoor events this fall.
Late in the summer, the NBA announced that it would abide by said mandates. This means, at least for now, players not vaccinated for COVID-19 wouldn’t be able to play home games or practice within the local regions.
In talking to the media on Tuesday, Brooklyn Nets general manager Sean Marks admitted that a couple players on the championship-caliber roster remain unvaccinated. In the process, he indicated that it wouldn’t be much of an issue.
“We don’t see these, whether it’s a city-wide mandate or whether it’s the league mandate to follow, being any sort of hindrance to us putting out a team,” Marks said, via the Brooklyn Nets.
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As of right now, New York City requires individuals who are 12 years or older to provide proof of at least one dose of the vaccine in order to access dining, exercise or entertainment in indoor venues. The Nets’ training camp opens a week from Tuesday.
Will the Brooklyn Nets be impacted by COVID-19 mandates?
Marks can say what he wants. But there’s a reality to all of this. We have no idea what individuals within the Nets’ locker room are not vaccinated. It goes without saying that the impact would be felt more if said players includes one of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden rather than the 15th player on the roster.
For Marks and the Nets, this remains an individual choice. He’s not going to push those within the organization to get vaccinated.
“Those are individual decisions, whether it’s a staff member or a player has to come to terms with. It’s obviously out of our control,” Marks said.
That’s pretty much the best way to go about it.
With that said, there’s no telling how these local mandates are going to impact the Nets, Knicks and Warriors moving forward. That will only be known once training camp practices start and preseason games begin early next month.
