While the Los Angeles COVID-19 restrictions pertaining to sporting events have not yet caught up to the level of strictness of San Francisco or New York City, the LA Clippers will not have to worry about any of their players missing games as a result of being unvaccinated should new mandaits come into effect. During day 2 of the team’s training camp, Head Coach Tyronn Lue confirmed to the media that the team is fully vaccinated.
When asked if, as a coach, he has to keep an eye on new vaccine requirements in other cities in anticipation of LA eventually following suit, Lue said he and his squad doesn’t have to worry.
“Our players are vaccinated,” Lue said frankly. “We just try to do whatever the league tells us to do. Try to abide by the rules and go from there. We talked about it last year, just being able to adapt. Doing whatever we need to do to play the game that we love.”
Among the most notable holdouts to getting the jab are Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving, who will be unable to play home games at Barclays Center should he remain unvaccinated by opening night. Washington Wizards star Bradley Beal also says he has no intention of receiving the vaccine, though D.C. has yet to implement any mandaits that could stop him from playing.
“Certain players, certain people got different beliefs, and I respect those beliefs,” Lue said. “Our guys are fully vaccinated, so I respect their beliefs as well.”
The league has done about everything it can to get its players fully vaccinated other than actually requiring them to get the shot. Unvaccinated players who miss games due to their city’s local mandates (the Knicks, Nets and Warriors as of now) will not be paid for those missed games. Additionally, new health and safety protocols say unvaccinated players cannot eat in the same indoor room as other players, must keep six feet of distance during team meetings, must have a distant locker, must remain at their hotel during road trips, and are prohibited from public venues, per The Athletic’s Shams Charania.
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