As an American, member of Congress, former New Yorker, and fan of the NBA, I, like so many, have serious concerns regarding the NBA sidelining point guard Kyrie Irving due to the egregious vaccine mandate. As the world came to a screeching halt at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, there wasn’t a soul on the planet who didn’t face a massive change of life, including the professional sports apparatus. At once, stadiums that once held legends such as Jordan, Shaq, Bird, Kobe, and Barkley shuttered their doors, and the future of live sports seemed uncertain. For months, owners, managers, coaches, and players spent countless hours trying to manage the tremendous blow COVID-19 was having on the league, and to the NBA’s credit, it was only a matter of time before James, Durant, Antetokounmpo, Embiid, Jokic, and Curry graced the court again.
The transition from lockdown to the resumption of play did not come without its hiccups — but with the tireless efforts of the NBA and health experts, the game was able to continue in the never-before-done Orlando COVID-19 “bubble.” While this measure seemed to be the most extreme option, this historic step allowed for the continuation of basketball, and as a fan, I was just happy to have basketball back. Finally, the end of this once-in-a-lifetime season came with my Los Angeles Lakers winning the national championship against the Miami Heat on Oct. 11, 2020.
Fast-forward a few months and the seeds of the Trump administration’s “Operation Warp Speed” finally produced the long-waited COVID-19 vaccine, giving countless families a big sigh of relief in hopes for a return to normal. Once vaccines became readily available, millions of people lined up to receive “the jab,” including many prominent figures in politics, Hollywood, and sports, including many in the NBA. Unfortunately, as nationwide vaccination numbers increased, so did the authoritarian mandates in America’s most liberal cities, including New York City. These mandates stripped the people of their medical autonomy and left millions with no other choice but to bend the knee to radical Democratic mayors, governors, and even the executive branch of the U.S. government. No person was unscathed from these mandates, from city bus workers to executives of Fortune 500 companies and even members of the NBA.
Following the surge of the delta and omicron variants, the science and messaging related to the vaccine flip-flopped and called into question many, if not all, COVID-19-related mandates. Despite vaccinated players and everyday people still falling ill and spreading COVID-19, Democrats and politically motivated “health experts” refused to issue new guidance in regard to vaccines, and many remained beholden to this mandate. Throughout this pandemic, I’ve repeated two phrases: ‘make it make sense’ and ‘following political science, not science.’ The Kyrie Irving situation has me yelling both expressions while still witnessing Irving on the bench. His case is particularly frustrating because the reasoning behind his inability to play doesn’t follow “the science” and quite frankly doesn’t follow common sense. Suppose Irving played for any other team outside the liberal elitist states of California or New York. In that case, he’d be able to play nearly every game of the season — but because of New York’s obsolete vaccine mandate, he’s watching from the sidelines.
Even more aggravating is the brainless reality that Irving can sit in the stands maskless to watch his team play, but he cannot participate in the game. Amid the vaccine debate, many in the NBA have and continue to remain silent on this issue, inadvertently kissing the ring of Dr. Anthony Fauci, former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, and the national media — but thankfully, more and more people are saying enough is enough. The most recent example of this came from NBA legend Kevin Durant, who sounded the alarm on the need to curtail the vaccine policy and called on the New York City mayor to “figure it out.” This debate over the vaccine was never about health — it was about maintaining the power of the people in the name of science. Former President Donald Trump said it best: “We cannot let the cure [to COVID-19] be worse than the disease itself.” And if these vaccine, mask, and COVID-19-related mandates have taught us anything, we have made the cure worse than the disease.
It’s been long overdue for federal, state, and local leaders to disband every COVID-19 mandate and for the NBA and New York state and city officials to allow Irving to play ball.
Rep. Byron Donalds is a Republican who represents Florida’s 19th Congressional District.
