NEW YORK (AP) Kyrie Irving might be just the jolt the Brooklyn Nets need to escape a midseason slump.
After refusing to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, Irving has been unable to play at home and for much of the season was unwelcome on the road. The Nets didn’t want a part-time player, so sent him away during the preseason.
Things changed. The Nets decided they needed whatever they could get from Irving and are expected to put him on the court for the first time this season Wednesday at Indiana.
”It definitely gives us a spark,” All-Star guard James Harden said. ”Obviously we’re on a three-game skid right now.”
Those losses all came at home, and there’s nothing Irving can do about the Nets’ struggles in Brooklyn if he remains unvaccinated. The vaccine is mandated for New York City athletes playing in public venues. He has said refusing it was what’s best for him and that he was aware there would be consequences.
But he can play in road games in the cities where there is no…