NBA and NBPA agree on a pay structure for unvaccinated players; stars like Kyrie Irving could lose $380k for missing games

Kyrie Irving has been at the center of the NBA's attention for weeks now. Ever since the Brooklyn Nets star refused to acknowledge his vaccination status, analysts and pundits have started analyzing what it means for the team if one of the Nets' 'Big 3' is forced to miss all home games.

New York City laws ban unvaccinated individuals from attending large indoor gatherings, such as a basketball arena. Kyrie Irving would need to get at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine or else he would be forced to miss home games so that would be 41 out of 82 games the Nets would be without their seven-time All-Star guard.

However, one of the major implications for missing home games is the pay cut. The NBA has already announced that players who will miss games will not get paid and that is millions of dollars being left on the table. ESPN analysts Tim Bontemps and Bobby Marks reported that the NBA and NBPA (National Basketball Player's Association) agreed on a new pay structure for the unvaccinated players. They said,

"The NBA and the NBPA have agreed to a reduction in pay of 1/91.6th of a player's salary for each game an unvaccinated player misses in their home market because of local laws. For example, Kyrie Irving would lose roughly $381,000 per game."

The pay cut would be 1/91.6th of the player's annual salary. According to his contract with the Brooklyn Nets, Kyrie Irving will make $34,916,200 in the 2021-22 NBA season. A 1/91.6th pay cut implies he will lose $381,181.23 per game he is absent and if he misses 41 games, that would bring his total pay cut to $15,628,430.

For context, a normal game missed is a pay cut of 1/145th of the player's salary.

This situation isn't being treated like a normal suspension so the player's salary will be on the team's books regardless of his absence on the court. Hence, even though the Brooklyn Nets will not be paying Kyrie Irving $15.6 million, they will still pay the luxury tax as there are no tax savings.

Vaccination rate for NBA players rises to 95%

Andrew Wiggins at the Golden State Warriors Media Day

There has been an uptick in the number of players who have been vaccinated since training camps began. Part of the reason could be the hefty pay cut while being forced to miss games at New York City and San Francisco. Many teams, such as the LA Lakers, have announced that all their players are vaccinated. However, there is a minority of players who still haven't received a single dose of the COVID-19 vaccine as the vaccination rate was 90% last week but is up to 95% now.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported,

"The NBA has reached a 95% vaccination threshold of its players, reflecting a steady rise since the opening of training camps this week, league sources told ESPN"

One of the stars in the spotlight of the NBA's COVID-19 saga was Andrew Wiggins of the Golden State Warriors. He was going to miss all home games which would put the team's championship aspirations in jeopardy. However, coach Steve Kerr and the team reported that Wiggins had been vaccinated and the issue was behind them.

Brooklyn Nets GM Sean Marks clarified that he believes the issue with Kyrie Irving will get resolved before the 2021-22 NBA regular season kicks off.