How will Irving’s refusal to get vaccinated change the fate of the Nets’ Big Three?

During the 2021 offseason, the Nets with Durant + Harden + Irving were regarded as a historic offensive team. In the playoffs of the previous season, the trio averaged 85.2 points per game when they played at the same time, with a hit rate of 50/40/90. The management spent $320 million in luxury tax, aiming to win the championship.

Chapter 1: Vaccine order surprise attack (September 2021)

• New York epidemic prevention policy: All professional athletes must be vaccinated before they can participate in home games

• Irving’s position: “Personal beliefs” refused to be vaccinated, absent from media day

• Management compromise: initially allowed to play only away games (missed 27 games in the first 35 games)

Key impact:

Harden was forced to switch to point guard, and his average playing time soared to 37 minutes (third in the league)

Durant was so tired that he injured his left knee ligament and missed 21 games

Locker room Split: Mills and other role players openly questioned “privileged treatment”

Chapter 2: Harden’s desperate departure (February 2022)

• Before the trade deadline: Harden told the management that he “could not tolerate an unstable environment”

• Transaction details: The Nets sold Harden at a low price and only exchanged for Ben Simmons (who did not play at the time due to psychological problems)

• Data comparison:

Number of games played by the Big Three: Only 16 games

Expected probability of winning the championship: plummeted from 58% at the beginning of the season (No. 1 in the league) to 12%

Chapter 3: Postseason The absurd drama of the game (April 2022)

• Policy mutation: New York Mayor specially approved unvaccinated players to play, Irving returned to the front line

• First round against Celtics:

Irving averaged only 14 points and 38% shooting during Ramadan

Durant was double-teamed to 5.8 turnovers per game

The Nets became the first favorite to be swept in NBA history

Chapter 4: Chain reaction and dynasty collapse

Aftermath of the 2022-23 season:

Durant applied for a trade and said frankly that he was “disappointed with the team culture”

Irving was The anti-Semitic incident led to another suspension, and he was eventually traded to the Mavericks.

The Nets paid three years of luxury tax in vain, and the reconstruction period was 5 years earlier than expected.

Expert review:

The ESPN model calculated that if Irving played normally, the Nets’ chance of winning the championship in 2022 would reach 43%.

Harden admitted in an interview with the 76ers: “That Nets team should have established a dynasty.”

Thinking: Personal choice VS team interests

The Irving incident has become a classic case in professional sports:

✓ Star privilege boundary: How to balance when personal beliefs conflict with team interests?

✓ Failure of risk management: Why didn’t the Nets include an epidemic prevention clause when signing?

✓ Cultural construction dilemma: Is it more difficult for super teams to manage individual stars?

There is no if in history

When Irving and Doncic joined forces in 2023, a Nets reporter posted a post jokingly: “Thanks to Irving’s vaccine stance, otherwise we would never see the 077+KI combination.” This super team that could have rewritten history eventually became the most expensive “if” story in the NBA.