The NBA will not institute a COVID-19 vaccine mande, but Adam Silver believes "most people" will ultimately choose to do so.
"We're seeing this now, both in the actual numbers of people getting vaccinated in the United States and opinion polls, that people are becoming more willing to get vaccinated," Silver said during his All-Star Weekend virtual news conference from Atlanta. "I think, as to those who have been hesitators, as tens of millions of people now in the United States have gotten the vaccine, that people are seeing, at least in the short-term, what the impact is, and they're hearing about how incredibly effective these vaccines are.
"My hunch is that most players ultimately will choose to get vaccinated. They have to make personal decisions at the end of the day -- and I take that very seriously, and I take concerns very seriously. But my sense is most [players] will, ultimately, decide it is in their interest to get vaccinated."
The league will loosen its COVID-19 protocols for players who receive the vaccine.
Silver stated that no NBA player, to his knowledge, has been vaccinated so far.