Taking shot remains NBA quandary
Vaxxed Smart, Tatum support freedom of choice
From across the league, where Kyrie Irving and Devin Booker missed their respective media days due to health and safety protocols, to locally, where Ime Udoka missed Monday’s Celtics media day as the result of a breakthrough positive COVID test, the NBA continues to wrestle with the balance between public health and individual freedom.
The Celtics coach, who tested positive despite getting vaccinated, was in the 10th and final day of quarantine Monday, and expected to be on hand when his new team started training camp on Tuesday at The Auerbach Center.
Not all of his players are vaccinated, leaving the Celtics to navigate the same choppy sea as the rest of the league. But to hear Marcus Smart tell it, it’s simply easier to get the shot and eliminate the headaches from this upcoming, complicated season.
“It’s tough. It’s tough being told what you can and can’t do with your own body,” said Smart. “For me, everybody is entitled to their own opinion. I chose to get vaccinated because one, quite frankly, I didn’t feel like dealing with the BS. But that was my decision, and I stand with anybody who makes their own decision to deal with what they feel is best for themselves.
“Unfortunately there’s certain situations where the league will make it (difficult) for players who aren’t vaccinated, but I chose to get vaccinated because I didn’t want to deal with the BS, and I didn’t feel like causing my team any disparity when it comes to me not being available. I respect everyone’s decision, pro or against.”
Jayson Tatum, another who not only tested positive for COVID, but suffered physically from its effects for a prolonged period of time, agrees with the position that this is a matter of choice.
“I mean, it’s your own decision. I fully understand the concerns of those who aren’t vaccinated that don’t want to, and I understand the people like myself that did,” he said. “It’s your own personal health and your reason. Nobody should be judged one way or the other, whatever their decision is.
“I think it’s just adjusting to this new normal that we have to get used to. I’ve had it. Many people have had it. It’s nobody’s fault. It’s something that’s extremely hard to control, so you don’t want to shame anybody if they contract the virus or something like that, because I know how fragile things like that can be. But just following the guidelines and trying to stay as safe as we can while having a job to do.”
Complications appear to be inevitable. The Celtics open the season on Oct. 20 in New York — a city that requires proof of vaccination from fans and players alike to enter a building.
The Celtics are under the impression that the New York and Brooklyn rules don’t apply to visiting players, though all concerned admit that adjustments will have to be made.
“Guys have been informed and educated pretty rigorously on all of the vaccination benefits and it’s a personal choice that guys have to make on their own,” Udoka said via Zoom conference. “We’d love to have close to 100% (vaccination) if possible and obviously avoid certain situations.
“But, like I said, guys have to make a choice at the end of the day and I think society in general, let alone sports and the NBA, you can see people dealing with this across the board, whether it’s football or baseball, guys have to pivot and be ready to adjust on the fly,” he said. “I think over the last year and a half I’ve prepared and so has the rest of the NBA for this. In general they’ve been educated and it’s a choice they have to make. And there are repercussions if you’re not vaccinated. We all know that. It’s an individual choice. But the closer we can get to 100% the better it’ll be for our team knowing that it’s going to be something people have to deal with throughout the year.”
Some players, though, aren’t to that point yet. Josh Richardson, a new addition who will play a multi-faceted role in the rotation, has yet to get vaccinated.
“I mean, that subject is pretty personal,” said Richardson. “I’ve kind of talked about what I’m going to do and what I’m not going to do with my family and my circle, so I’m not really sure. But I think it’s good that people are still educating themselves on the subject and going forward, I’m not sure.”
And for now, there’s no other route.
“I think it’s a personal decision,” said Jaylen Brown, a member of the players association’s executive board, and thus someone who is dealing with this dialogue on a national basis.
“I have my own thoughts about it but I respect my teammates’ decisions and things like that. I know everybody has their own opinion about it but I think it’s a personal choice.”