The first press conference of the 2021-22 season was handled by Lakers VP of Basketball Operations Rob Pelinka on Thursday afternoon, when he shared an important piece of information regarding the team’s potential availability on the court.
“We’ve worked really hard with our UCLA Health partners, and our team doctors, our players, agents and family members … We will be, on opening night when we play the Golden State Warriors, all of the players that are currently signed on our roster that night will be deemed fully vaccinated. We’re grateful for that.”
With COVID-19 absences impacting every NBA team last season, the vaccination status of the Lakers is significant as they make their push to try and bring another title to Los Angeles following the injury-plagued previous season that ultimately ended in Round 1.