Basketball star Kevin Durant on March 13 questioned why New York City’s mayor has kept a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for private employers in place, alleging the mayor wants attention.
“It’s ridiculous. I don’t understand it at all. It just feels like, at this point now, someone is trying to make a statement or point to flex their authority,” Durant told reporters after New York’s two basketball teams played at Barclays Center in the Brooklyn borough.
“Everybody out here looking for attention. I feel like that’s what the mayor wants right now; some attention,” he added.
But Adams has insisted on keeping in place a different vaccine mandate that requires employees of private businesses to get a vaccine, claiming it’s necessary to ensure the city doesn’t shut down again.
“I want Kyrie on the court. I would do anything to get that ring. So badly, I want it. But there’s so much at stake here. And I spoke with the owner of the team. We want to find a way to get Kyrie on the court, but this is a bigger issue,” Adams said during a recent appearance on CNBC.
“I can’t have my city close down again, and it would send the wrong message just to have an exception for one player when we’re telling countless number of New York City employees ‘If you don’t follow the rules, you won’t be able to be employed.’”
Adams was referring to Kyrie Irving, who is one of Durant’s teammates on the Brooklyn Nets.
Irving, who is unvaccinated, has been barred from playing home games under the mandate, which was imposed by former Mayor Bill de Blasio, another Democrat.
Under the relaxed rules, Irving was able to attend Sunday’s game but did so as a spectator, sitting separately from his team.
The current rule lets unvaccinated players from away teams participate in games in the city but not unvaccinated players on the home team.
“We’re all confused. Pretty much everybody in the world is confused at this point. Early on in the season, people didn’t understand what was going on but now, it just looks stupid. Eric, you got to figure this out,” Durant said.
Adams acknowledged the exception “makes no sense” and took a subtle shot at de Blasio but also cast himself as powerless in the situation, saying, “these are the rules, and I have to follow the rules.” He also said, “We are here right now opening our city because of vaccine mandates.”
Adams’ office didn’t return emailed questions, including a query for the data that the mayor is relying on to claim mandates help prevent the city from shutting down.
All three COVID-19 vaccines in the United States are largely ineffective against preventing COVID-19 infection caused by the Omicron virus variant and all three have inferior protection against severe disease caused by Omicron compared with the previous variant, Delta.
Responding to a heckler during a briefing over the weekend, Adams said Irving “can play tomorrow,” adding, “get vaccinated.”
