Jonathan Isaac: 'This is what the media did to me that red-pilled me'



Orlando Magic player Jonathan Isaac hasn’t just faced challenges on the court the past few years — he's faced challenges from teammates, the media, and fans for his beliefs.

Isaac became one of many headlines during the BLM riots of 2020 for refusing to kneel with his teammates during the national anthem and then again when he refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

“I never felt comfortable with the tone and the rhetoric of the Black Lives Matter organization, and I didn’t want to co-sign their message by putting on their T-shirt, and also, I didn’t want to co-sign, you know, their message by kneeling,” Isaac tells Dave Rubin.

While he got a lot of pushback for his decision not to kneel, Isaac doesn’t regret it.

He also received a lot of pushback for his refusal to be vaccinated, which he has now had a lot of discussions with his teammates about.

“People were being crazy about COVID — all these weird things about why you should get a shot and incentivizing you to get a shot,” Isaac says, adding, “and then obviously you’re getting bullied if you even have any questions about it, natural immunity, all that stuff.”

“If you’re trying to get somebody to do something, threatening them is only going to make them more weary,” Isaac says.

Isaac recalls being tricked by Rolling Stone magazine, which revealed to him just how much propaganda the media pushes.

“Then Rolling Stone put out an article, it was something like ‘NBA’s Anti-Vaxxer Problem,’” which he says seemed to be a “good faith” interview before it was published.

“I’m telling them about, you know, why my decision not to get vaccinated, and then the article comes out and it’s like, ‘Jonathan Isaac waited for people to die, he put his trust in God,' all this different stuff.’”

“This is the first time that I had saw that there is a media bias, and, you know, people call it propaganda,” Isaac continues.

“It’s freaky, but it’s freeing too,” Isaac says, adding, “I have my moment of like, 'Okay, I know what all this means.'”


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How the NBA Used Fear to Control Players (Pt. 1) | Jonathan Isaac | POLITICS | Rubin Report

How the NBA Used Fear to Control Players (Pt. 1) | Jonathan Isaac | POLITICS | Rubin Report

Despite at least 94% of players vaccinated, the NBA, NFL, and NHL forced to cancel games, change COVID-19 protocols, and welcome unvaccinated players during latest spike of cases



The major professional sports leagues in the U.S. are being forced to cancel a slew of games, alter COVID-19 protocols, and allow a once-shunned vaccinated superstar to return to action because of a rash of COVID-19 cases amongst the players, despite being nearly 100% vaccinated against coronavirus.

The NFL changes COVID-19 protocols

Despite 94.6% of NFL players being fully vaccinated, there were 58 players who tested positive for COVID-19 between Nov. 28 and Dec. 11. NFL personnel are 100% vaccinated, but there were 50 cases in the same time period.

Cases have surged even higher this week, forcing the NFL to postpone three games in Week 15.

"The NFL hit a single-day high of 36 positive tests among players Monday," The Hill reported. "By Wednesday, the COVID-19 list grew to at least 90 players."

The Los Angeles Rams currently have 29 players who either tested positive for COVID-19 this week or were still on the reserve/COVID-19 list from last week, according to ESPN. The Cleveland Browns have 24 players on the reserve/COVID-19 list. The Washington Football Team have 23 players on the reserve/COVID-19 list, including starting quarterback Taylor Heinicke and backup Kyle Allen.

The National Football League will attempt to tackle the flood of COVID-19 cases by ending the mandate for weekly COVID-19 tests for asymptomatic vaccinated players. However, the NFL will penalize unvaccinated players – who will continue to have to test daily.

NFL Network reporter Tom Pelissero wrote, "The revised NFL-NFLPA COVID-19 protocols will end regular weekly testing of asymptomatic, fully vaccinated individuals."

Pelissero noted that "over 150 (mostly asymptomatic) players" tested positive for COVID-19 in the past week.

The revised NFL-NFLPA COVID-19 protocols will end regular weekly testing of asymptomatic, fully vaccinated individuals. A major shift amidst the emergence of the Omicron variant and over 150 (mostly asymptomatic) players testing positive this past week.\n\nFrom today\u2019s memo:pic.twitter.com/9uMn92dfNp
— Tom Pelissero (@Tom Pelissero) 1639856091

NHL cancels games for an entire week for 3 teams

The National Hockey League is postponing all games for a week for three franchises because of rising COVID-19 cases. The Calgary Flames, Colorado Avalanche, and Florida Panthers have had their games postponed through Dec. 26, according to the Sporting News. The Flames have 18 players and coaches out of action because of COVID-19 protocols, the Panthers have seven, and the Avalanche have five players.

The NHL made the decision "due to concern with the number of positive cases within the last two days as well as concern for continued COVID spread in the coming days," the league said in a statement.

Additionally, the next two games for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Vancouver Canucks are also canceled after nine players tested positive for COVID-19.

NHL players are nearly 100% vaccinated. There are 32 NHL teams with a maximum of 23 players for a potential of 736 players in the league. There is only one unvaccinated NHL player in the entire league – Tyler Bertuzzi of the Detroit Red Wings.

NBA team does a 180 to welcome unvaccinated star back

The Brooklyn Nets welcomed 7-time All-Star Kyrie Irving back to the team on Friday, despite him being unvaccinated. Irving was booted from the team in the preseason for not being vaccinated and has yet to play in any regular-season NBA games.

New York City's COVID-19 vaccine mandate would prohibit Irving from playing in Nets' home games at the Barclays Center, but he could still participate in most road games.

However, the Nets have been obliterated by a swarm of COVID-19 cases this week. The Nets only had eight active players – the minimum number of players for a game to be played – when Brooklyn hosted the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday. The team has a total of 10 players on the sidelines because of positive COVID-19 tests, including stars Kevin Durant, James Harden, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Irving.

The Chicago Bulls also had 10 players test positive for COVID-19, which caused them to postpone two games this week. Even Bulls broadcasters Stacey King and Bill Wennington were forced into isolation due to the NBA's COVID-19 protocols, which states that players and personnel must quarantine for 10 days or until they return two negative PCR tests within a 24-hour window.

The widespread outbreak of COVID-19 comes at a time when 97% of the league's players are fully vaccinated.

NBA implements 'booster day' as the league is hit with a surge of COVID cases



The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown a wrench into the NBA's regular season and led the league to adopt stricter COVID-prevention protocols to combat the virus, including a "booster day," which is scheduled for Friday, according to CBS Sports

The announcement of booster day comes as a spate of COVID-related news has impacted the league this week, including two games set for Dec. 14 and 16 that the Chicago Bulls have had to postpone because 10 team members are unable to play due to the league's protocols, according to ESPN.

The Bulls aren't the only team affected by COVID and the health and safety protocols. The Associated Press reported that Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle will have to sit out a few games, and the Brooklyn Nets will lose five players for their home game against the Toronto Raptors on Thursday. The Raptors also released a statement on Monday that two members of their broadcast team have also decided not to come to work after coming in contact with an individual who tested positive for COVID.

COVID has plagued the league, with a total of 51 players having to enter COVID protocols. And 41 of the players placed on COVID protocols have missed games as of Tuesday morning, according to a report by ESPN.

Raptor Fans, thank you for all of your well wishes. I am fully Vaccinated & tested Negative. I feel great and these precautionary measures help keep us all safe and healthy. I look forward to being back on the air soon! Go Raps!https://twitter.com/raptors/status/1470523800454377485\u00a0\u2026
— Matt Devlin (@Matt Devlin) 1639442068

The NBA's current COVID protocols indicate that any player who tests positive for the virus must spend at least 10 days away from the team unless he receives two negative PCR tests within a 24-hour period. The policy also states that players who are unvaccinated and test positive for contact tracing are required to quarantine themselves for seven days. Vaccinated players who test positive for contact tracing are not required to quarantine in most cases but must undergo seven days of testing, according to Sporting News.

The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association have pushed both players and staff to get coronavirus booster shots for several weeks, according to the Associated Press. The AP also reported that the NBA's new COVID guidelines will be announced Friday.

According to the NBA, 97% of all players have been vaccinated, and the league has encouraged all players and staff to take the booster by Friday, according to ESPN. Players who fail to do so will be subject to pregame COVID tests the same as unvaccinated players, according to a report from ESPN.

Staff designated Tier 1 or those who operate within 15 feet of players will also have to get a booster shot to get league clearance, according to CBS Sports.

The most current data from the NBA suggests that more than 60% of players have gotten booster shots, which means around 150 players would be subjected to daily testing under the proposed new guidelines, according to the Associated Press report.