NBA says players will not be paid for games missed due to local vaccination mandates

NBA spokesperson Mike Bass said players who refuse to comply with local vaccination mandates in their team’s home market will lose pay for the games they miss, according to Shams Charania. There are currently local vaccine mandates in place in New York and San Francisco. Those mandates impact every player on the New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets and San Francisco Warriors.

The league says 90 percent of its players are fully vaccinated but there has been a vocal minority pushing anti-vaccine sentiment. Nets star guard Kyrie Irving has been leading the charge but said at media day he expects to be with the team. Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins details his experience with the vaccine mandate as “being backed against a wall” but did not say whether he planned to get the shot. Washington Wizards superstar Bradley Beal said he is not vaccinated but will not face significant financial penalties as Washington D.C. has no vaccine mandate.

The New York and San Francisco mandates do not apply to visiting players, which has caused some confusion and questioning among players. Let’s see how the mandates impact the Nets and the Warriors specifically, as those teams are both in the top four for title odds. Brooklyn is the favorite according to DraftKings Sportsbook at +200 while Golden State is fourth at +1100.