Absolute ‘madness’ in NBA Covid protest breach

Protesters have breached security barricades outside an NBA game over the vaccination-related suspension of a Brooklyn Nets star.

New York protesters have breached security barriers outside an NBA game over Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving’s Covid-19 suspension.

Videos from outside the team’s Barclays Centre stadium show a group of around 100 protesters storm an entry point inside the venue.

The group of protesters have been filmed chanting “No vaccine mandate”, “Stand with Kyrie”, and “Let Kyrie play”.

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Wild footage shows security personnel trying to hold back a group of break away protesters.

Some members of the crowd snuck through the quickly overrun security staff and reached the front dors.

The group appeared to be held up at the entry point and video from inside the stadium appears to show no unauthorised spectators made it inside the stadium ahead of the team’s first home game of the NBA season against Charlotte.

“Barclays Center briefly closed its doors today in order to clear protesters from the main doors on the plaza and ensure guests could safely enter the arena,” stadium officials told The New York Post in a statement.

NOW - Protesters against vaccine mandates breaking through barricades to Barclay's Center in NYC, chanting "Let Kyrie play"pic.twitter.com/PIWk42Uyus

— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) October 24, 2021

“Only ticketed guests were able to enter the building and the game proceeded according to schedule,” the statement said.

The scary scenes were described as “madness” by The Athletic’s NBA reporter Richard Deitsch.

Irving, the team’s All-Star point guard, has been barred from practicing with the team or playing home games for defying the team’s requirement that all players be vaccinated against the global pandemic.

The NBA does not mandate the vaccines, but New York City does, and players in local sports venues are required to be inoculated to play.

The team suspended Irving — even from playing in the team’s away games outside of New York.

He has become the most divisive figure in the NBA right now — and he was last week given a serve by basketball legend Charles Barkley.

Irving will still earn approximately $23 million this season — because it is the team’s decision to stand him down for the away games.

A protester outside the Barclays Centre. Photo: Twitter, @Suggie2Becklace, Getty.

Footage posted on Twitter shows hundreds of protesters descending on the Brooklyn arena earlier in the day.

“I have to stand up for me,” said one marcher, a city school teacher, told WPIX-TV. “I have to stand up for my son.”

Among the signs being held up by protesters were messages that included the phrase “My body. My choice” and “Equal rights for unvaxxed”.

Before the start of this season, the team informed the point guard he would not be allowed to practice with the team or play at Barclays because of his refusal to get a COVID-19 vaccine.

“Kyrie has made a personal choice, and we respect his individual right to choose,” the team said in a statement at the time.

“Currently the choice restricts his ability to be a full-time member of the team, and we will not permit any member of our team to participate with part-time availability,” the statement said.

Irving, 29, joined Brooklyn in 2019 and helped lead the team into the playoffs last season before missing playing time against the Milwaukee Bucks due to injury.

The Nets went on to lose the game 111-95 in a massive upset.

Originally published as Absolute ‘madness’ in NBA Covid protest breach