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Tim Daniels is the featured Columnist for the Brooklyn Nets.
Nathaniel S.
Nets governor Joe Tsai said that the decision to bring Irving back to the active roster is not a political statement.
Even though he'll only be eligible to play road games because of his unvaccinated status, the team decided that Irving gives it the best chance to win games because of his injuries.
We're trying to be practical. "I don't want to make this a political issue, and I've always said that." My only religion is to win games. That's where we are.
Nets general manager Sean Marks said in a statement on October 12 that Irving wouldn't join the team until he was eligible to be a full participant.
Marks announced the reversal of that position Friday.
The organization decided to have Irving rejoin the team for games and practices in which he is eligible to participate. We arrived at this decision with the full support of our players and after careful consideration of our current circumstances, including players missing games due to injuries and health and safety protocols. We believe that the addition of Kyrie will allow us to balance the physical demands on the entire roster. We are looking forward to getting our entire roster back together, as well as getting Kyrie back in the lineup.
Irving has been steadfast in his decision not to bevaccinated. In October, the first overall pick explained that he wasn't anti-vaccine but was making a choice based on his circumstances.
"This is my life," the seven-time All-Star said. I get to do whatever I want with this, it's one body that I get here. You are telling me what to do with my body. This is related to what is happening in our world. I am being grouped into something bigger than basketball.
Lewis was told that allowing the guard to return doesn't mean he supports his decision to be unvaccinated.
I think a lot of people are mad at me for taking one stance or the other, because they are either pro-vax or anti-vax. He said that he was not taking this as a political thing. I'm helping the Brooklyn Nets win a championship. That's the thinking.
Irving will provide a boost to the Nets once he is back to full speed.
The Duke product averaged 26.9 points, 6.0 assists, 4.8 rebound and 1.4 steals across 54 appearances for Brooklyn last season.
He'll need to get reintegrated into the NBA's COVID-19 protocols before he can start practicing.
