On March 13th, Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving sat maskless, courtside in the Barclays Center, as his teammate Kevin Durant led the Nets to a win. Irving, whose anti-vaccine stance has drawn support from prominent right-wing figures like Donald Trump Jr. and Ted Cruz, was forbidden from playing home games due to a vaccine mandate put in place by New York City mayor Eric Adams. Following the game, Durant was asked about Irving being allowed in the stadium despite not being allowed to play. In his response, he insinuated that Adams was maintaining the vaccine mandate as a way to flex his authority and get attention. The continued anti-vaccine stance and distrust of public figures enacting pandemic restrictions has effects that extend beyond the NBA.
Kyrie Irving’s place in the spotlight for his beliefs in nothing new. He famously expressed his belief that the earth is flat, and has also articulated his belief that the moon landings are fake. In both examples, he offered the rallying cry of “do your own research”, a call to action that has become a key part of conspiratorial thinking. The key difference between Irving’s previously expressed controversial beliefs and his current expression of vaccine skepticism is that the effects of Irving’s argument extend beyond himself this time.
The controversy around Irving’s vaccination status began at the start of the NBA season. The vaccine mandate was already in place, which meant that Irving could play only in arenas outside of New York without vaccine mandates of their own. Additionally, the Nets decided to hold Kyrie out of games entirely for the start of the season. In response, Irving explained that his decision to remain was a personal choice and represented something bigger than the game of basketball. Irving remained unvaccinated and unable to play until early January, when the Nets allowed Irving to play road games. He remained adamant that he would not receive the vaccine, even dodging a question about the impact of a celebrity publicly opposing the vaccine.
Irving never directly criticized Adams for upholding the vaccine mandate, but his actions speak louder than his words. Many observers felt that Irving’s presence represented an effort to discredit the mandate and cast it as an overzealous application of policy. This incident placed the national spotlight on Adams and placed tremendous pressure on the mayor to uphold the vaccine mandate. Regardless of how you feel about the way Adams has continued to update the mandate, we know that the vaccine is not dangerous. The pressure should be on individuals like Kyrie Irving to get the vaccine. Instead, the focus is on public servants like Adams to uphold basic public safety, which has real consequences.
The key context for any discussion of the implication of Irving’s actions is that although the COVID-19 pandemic is declining in severity, it is clearly not over. Due to the continuing emergence of COVID variants, individual states, including New York, are still seeing large increases in COVID cases. As a result, it is still dangerous for public figures to undercut public safety messaging. Regardless of Irving’s conviction that he is only acting in the interest of his own body, he is sending a clear message to those considering vaccination that the vaccine is not worth getting. This is problematic because studies have found that skepticism towards public safety measures contributed to the length and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is imperative that public figures like Irving accept the responsibility they have to model proper behavior.
Perhaps the most significant implication of Irving’s actions is that they undermine the authority of government officials. His actions led many to question the credibility of a public servant preaching in favor of pandemic regulations, which makes it difficult to improve public health outcomes. The presence of effective and credible leadership is one of the most important factors when managing any crisis. Irving’s actions set a dangerous precedent that if you are wealthy and influential enough, you do not need to act responsibly. Unfortunately, Irving’s strategy was successful. Mayor Adams agreed to amend the mandate on March 24th to allow athletes to play, clearing the way for Irving to return to action, as well as allowing a number of unvaccinated members of the New York Mets and Yankees to participate in the upcoming MLB season. Kyrie Irving’s actions serve as a bitter reminder of the importance of a unified effort to address public health crises, and the danger that noncompliance can pose.