After scoring an impressive 53 points on Sunday against the New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets’ star Kevin Durant decided to voice his opinion on the current COVID-19 mandates put in place. Thanks to New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Durant’s teammate Kyrie Irving isn’t allowed to pay due to him not getting the COVID-19 jab. While New York isn’t the first place to implement such a rule, what is shocking is how Irving can’t play but is allowed to attend games in the Nets’ arena. 

After his performance, Durant ripped into the COVID-19 mandate. “It’s ridiculous. I don’t understand it at all. There’s a few people in our arena that’s unvaxxed, right? They lifted all of that in our arena, right? So I don’t get it … I don’t get it. It just feels like at this point now, somebody’s trying to make a statement or a point to flex their authority. But everybody out here is looking for attention, and that’s what I feel like the mayor wants right now, is some attention. But he’ll figure it out soon. He better.”

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Durant claimed there were already people in the arena who hadn’t received the COVID-19 jab.  “But it just didn’t make any sense. There’s unvaxxed people in this building already. We got a guy who can come in the building, I guess, are they fearing our safety? I don’t get it. We’re all confused. Pretty much everybody in the world is confused at this point. Early on in the season people didn’t understand what was going on, but now it just looks stupid. So hopefully, Eric, you got to figure this out.”

It should be noted that the Nets’ coach, Steve Nash, admitted to Irving being in the team locker room during halftime. 

Addressing the Mayor, Durant said he needed to “figure something out, man, because it’s looking crazy. Especially on national TV, and [Irving] can come to the game, but not play — come on, man. Hey, yo, Eric.”

While playing on the road, Irving is allowed to participate, but only when in New York City, given the mandate, he is barred until receiving the jab. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told reporters, “This law in New York, the oddity of it to me is that it only applies to home players. I think if ultimately that rule is about protecting people who are in the arena, it just doesn’t quite make sense to me that an away player who is unvaccinated can play in Barclays but the home player can’t. To me that’s a reason they should take a look at that ordinance”. 

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