Shaq Wouldn’t Want To Be Kyrie’s Teammate If He Wouldn’t Be Able To Play Due To His COVID Vaccine Status

Kyrie Irving’s vaccination status has been a hot button topic in recent days. Ever since a report came out indicating that Irving had not received any of the vaccines against COVID-19, questions have existed regarding how he’d be able to help the Brooklyn Nets this season, as the NBA has made clear that players will have to follow their city’s various mandates regarding vaccines and New York’s means that Irving would be unable to participate in team activities — like practices and games — in the city.

For a Nets team that has serious championship aspirations, not having Irving for any reason would be a gigantic blow, let alone a reason that he can remedy pretty easily, although general manager Sean Marks has stressed that he thinks there won’t be any problems being in compliance of the city’s mandate. Shaquille O’Neal has a big problem with this, and on The Big Podcast with Shaq, expressed that if he were teammates with Irving, he’d want the guard off the team altogether.

“Kyrie has his views, he has his opinions, I’m not going to knock that,” O’Neal said. “But he does have an obligation, because he took that $200 million. Only thing I don’t like is, ‘Oh, can you respect my privacy.’ Once you sign up for this life, there is no privacy, and you have to accept it.

“But if you’re on my team and you can’t play home games, I don’t want you around,” he continued. “Like, we have a chance to win, and if you ain’t on the program, go somewhere else, period. Hey, whatever your reasons are, cool, I’m with that, but we ain’t gonna be going back and forth for 41 games whether you gonna play or not, get your ass up outta here.”

It is unclear what Irving will eventually do, but his aunt recently told Rolling Stone the possibility of sitting out home games is on the table.