LeBron James Calls COVID Vaccine Decision 'Private'
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Lakers star LeBron James over the weekend was coy regarding whether or not he would get the COVID-19 vaccine.
During a conference call with reporters ahead of Sunday's All-Star Game he called the decision a "private thing."
"That's a conversation that, you know, my family and I will have," James said. "And pretty much probably keep that to a private thing. Obviously I've seen Adam (Silver) had his comments about the vaccination and what not. But, you know, things like that, when you decide to do something, that's a conversation between you and your family and not for everybody."
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, speaking Saturday, indicated that the league would not require players to get the vaccine, nor would it require fans to be vaccinated in order to attend games.
"We have no plans to mandate that players get vaccinated for any large scale required vaccinations to take place, that can only happen with the player's association," Silver said. "Like I've said, we've only talked about educational efforts."
Dozens of NBA games have been postponed this season because of contact tracing. However, none thus far have involved either the Lakers or the Clippers.
It's unclear if the Lakers or Clippers will get to play in front of fans at Staples Center this season. Last week, California officials announced that outdoor sports with fans in attendance can resume as early as April 1, but indoor sports with fans are still prohibited.
Under the new guidelines, counties in the purple tier of the state's coronavirus reopening blueprint can have up to 100 fans for outdoor sporting events, such as baseball games at Dodger Stadium. However, once a county moves up into the red tier, capacity jumps to 20%.
L.A. County is currently in the purple tier, but is slated to move into the red tier as early as next week.