After a vaccination exemption, Kyrie Irving is ‘pinching’ himself, and he wants a contract extension with the Nets.

MIAMI, FLORIDA — Kyrie Irving is ecstatic about the thought of suiting up at Barclays Center for the first time after Thursday’s vaccine requirement exemption. With the ability to sign long-term extensions at his disposal, he intends to continue doing so for many more years to come.

 

A four-year, $186 million agreement fell through because of Irving’s refusal to be vaccinated. “It has always been about being comfortable, liking where I’m at, and I love it here,” he said. Until recently, this choice has restricted him to a touring-only part-time role. “I’m sure we’ll have some interesting discussions once the warm weather arrives. The problem is, I just cannot abandon the safety and security of my guy [No] 7.

 

While I’m able to play with some familiar faces, as well as those newcomers I’ve known for a long time, and a front office that’s prepared to do what’s required in order to create this thing for the long term—this is the formula for success.” That’s the mentality, then. That’s where I am right now.

 

With Irving unable to play at home, “Seven” (Kevin Durant) has been forced to shoulder an enormous weight. When Mayor Eric Adams issued Emergency Executive Order 62 on Thursday, the city’s private sector COVID-19 vaccination obligations for unvaccinated athletes were exempted. Irving is now looking forward to making his season debut on Sunday against the Hornets at the American Airlines Center.

 

Irving kept repeating, “Yes, yes, yes.” “Please take my comment serious when I say I’ve been pinching myself since Wednesday and Thursday because there was a time where I got my hopes really, really high and all the air was just let out.

 

When it comes to my degree of dissatisfaction, I didn’t want to get too enthused about it. Still, I’m attempting to keep my attention on the game at hand. But I know [Sunday] will arrive, and I’m excited to play in my hometown of Brooklyn again.”

 

Irving hasn’t been able to play at home this season because he couldn’t enter Barclays Center owing to New York City’s indoor immunisation regulations, and then because of private-sector mandates that prevented him from playing. Others who saw him as greedy were outraged, while those who saw him as fighting for his and others’ rights defended him.

 

When asked whether there was anything he could do to support the teachers’ union or the firefighters’ union, Irving stated he would take “progressive action.”

 

Irving kept repeating, “Yes, yes, yes.” “Please take my comment serious when I say I’ve been pinching myself since Wednesday and Thursday because there was a time where I got my hopes really, really high and all the air was just let out.

 

When it comes to my degree of dissatisfaction, I didn’t want to get too enthused about it. Still, I’m trying to keep my attention on the game. “However, I know that Sunday will ultimately arrive, and I’m eagerly awaiting the chance to return to Brooklyn to play.”

 

Irving hasn’t been able to play at home this season because he couldn’t enter Barclays Center owing to New York City’s indoor immunisation regulations, and then because of private-sector mandates that prevented him from playing. Many criticised his action as self-centred, while others praised it as a courageous stance for his own and others’ rights.

 

After 1,430 municipal employees were sacked for refusing to comply with vaccination regulations, Mayor Irving declared he would take “progressive action” to support the teachers’ unions and the firefighters’ unions.

 

Before the start of the season, the Nets were confident that All-Star point guard Irving would get vaccinated, much as the team’s general manager Sean Marks had claimed “good interactions” with Irving. In the wake of Irving’s refusal to get vaccinated, negotiations broke down and the arrangement was no longer viable.

 

On Saturday night, Irving was a part-time starter for the Nets, playing only 20 games, and his unusual in-out status undoubtedly contributed to the team’s 8-12 record with him.

It has played a major role in keeping Brooklyn in eighth place in the Eastern Conference and in a play-in berth. It is unclear if Irving, along with Kevin Durant and Ben Simmons, will re-sign with the Nets this season or in the long term.

 

This is something I signed up for in the long term, Irving told me. “So I’m very happy with this year. For that, I’m very thankful. A usual year hasn’t occurred this time around. But when I look at my coworkers and where we are as a company, I think about the future and what we can do to leave a lasting impression.

 

Rate my performance, judge the performance of everyone else in the league, and then we can speak about it a second time. We have a long-term plan in place, and that’s what matters most to me. It’s not enough to merely throw stuff together and see what happens. In spite of the fact that we’ll try our best, “