“I mean, what is it, April almost? It’s pretty obvious Kyrie Irving is not going to take the shot”: Kevin Durant opens up on the NYC’s vaccination mandate and why the Nets love Uncle Drew

NBA superstar Kevin Durant believes teammate Kyrie Irving won’t be getting vaccinated, adding the team has always supported and respected the Nets guard’s decision.

With the playoffs around the corner, Kyrie Irving continues to battle NYC’s vaccination mandate. The former champion has been a regular in the headlines, owing to his stance of not getting vaccinated against COVID-19. And the controversy is only getting heated with the passing of each day.

There has been a growing frustration amongst Irving’s teammates and Nets fans off-late regarding the inconsistencies in the mandate. While the directive doesn’t allow its players to participate in home games, it doesn’t say so for the visiting teams or the audience in the arenas.

Recently, Nets teammate Kevin Durant called out the NY mayor Eric Adams in a press conference. The two-time Finals MVP was visibly frustrated with Irving not being able to play but being allowed to attend games. A few days ago, Nets fans protested in support of Irving outside the Barclays Center.

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Though Durant is confident of Irving not getting vaccinated, he and his teammates aren’t frustrated with the former Cavs player. KD and co respect Irving for who he is and not only as a basketball player.

Kevin Durant and the Nets locker room have no malice against Kyrie Irving.

There is no doubt that the absence of Irving has affected the winning column of the Nets. The former champion is an elite scorer, known to break his opponent’s ankles. His recent 60-point spectacle in Orlando bears evidence to this.

Despite being limited to road games, Irving has managed to keep his fans entertained. There has been discussion off-late to remove the restriction on Irving to play home games. However, there is no confirmation on this, with Durant putting out the following statements.

“I mean, what is it, April almost? It’s pretty obvious that he’s not going to take the shot. So like I said, just focus on who you are and what you bring to the team every day and once that situation gets figured out, then it will. It’s out of my control, it’s out of everybody else’s control. So you can’t force anybody to do anything. So just try to just focus on me.”

Nonetheless, there is no anger against Irving from the Nets side, who continue to rally behind the former Duke player and look up to him more than just a mere basketball player.

“We love Kyrie as a human being,” Durant said. “I don’t think we were ever upset at him as much as people on the outside were. We get that it may affect the outcome of some basketball games, but that’s not the only reason why we love Kyrie as a person because what he can bring to the court. I think overall him as a human being, we respect who he is, we respect the game on top of that.”

Via: ESPN

KD is aware of Irving being frustrated with the situation as the latter was confident of the mandate being rolled back in due course of time. Nonetheless, Durant states there is no option but to deal with the situation and be hopeful.

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At a time when players don’t hesitate to walk out of situations where there is no scope for a championship, KD has shown great resilience and team spirit.