The NBA’s PSA movement to support COVID-19 vaccinations hit a roadblock. Many players are hesitant to join the movement for a variety of reasons.
According to NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, players hold doubts about the vaccine and the NBA’s support of it. As a result, the same skepticism that the NBA hopes to combat is common amongst players.
When contacted by the league, many agents showed reluctance in joining.
Distrust in the vaccine isn’t the only reason players are barring from joining the NBA in its vaccine promotion. With the league announcing an All-Star game despite player complaints, some players don’t want to help the league.
Thus far, NBA legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Russell joined the NBA’s PSA. However, they were already eligible for the vaccine due to their ages. According to the CDC tier guidelines, all current players would receive the vaccine under special circumstances as they aren’t yet eligible.
According to Dr. Anthony Fauci, there are hopes that NBA players and others with no underlying health issues may be vaccinated in the summer.
“[Vaccinations] will probably be prolonged into mid-to-late May and early June”
-Anthony Fauci
The league started the PSA with Abdul-Jabbar in hopes of promoting its safety. Now with many players refusing to join, the movement may come to a standstill.
