Admittedly, it was an awkward sight. Kyrie Irving, Brooklyn’s All-Star guard, nay, the Nets healthy All-Star guard, sitting courtside at Barclays Center, watching Brooklyn squeeze out a win over the Knicks on Sunday. Irving was there because New York lifted its vaccine mandate, freeing the unvaccinated Irving to attend a game at Barclays. He wasn’t in uniform because the city’s private sector mandate, still in effect, prevented it.
It's goofy, right? Irving can breathe the same air as 17,000 fans, but not play in front of them? On the ABC broadcast Doris Burke called the sight of Irving sitting courtside “visual absurdity.