He also said he would not use his platform to publicly encourage others to be vaccinated.<\/b>
\nLeBron James, the Los Angeles Lakers star, said Tuesday that he had been vaccinated against the coronavirus, after evading questions about his vaccination status last season. Several other high-profile N.B.A. players have resisted getting vaccinated ahead of the start of the N.B.A. season next month. \u201cI think everyone has their own choice to do what they feel is right for themselves and their family,\u201d James said. \u201cI know that I was very skeptical about it all, but after doing my research and things of that nature, I felt like it was best suited for not only me but for my family and my friends, and that\u2019s why I decided to do it.\u201d James did not say which vaccine he had taken, or the number of doses he had received. He also said he would not use his platform to publicly encourage others to be vaccinated. \u201cWe\u2019re talking about individuals\u2019 bodies,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re not talking about something that\u2019s political or racism or police brutality and things of that nature.\u201d He added: \u201cSo I don\u2019t feel like for me personally that I should get involved in what other people should do for their bodies and their livelihoods.\u201d Rob Pelinka, the general manager of the Lakers, said last week that he expects the team\u2019s entire roster to be fully vaccinated ahead of its season opener against the Golden State Warriors on Oct.19. Kent Bazemore, one of the team\u2019s new players, said he was reluctant to be vaccinated before Pelinka persuaded him to receive his first dose.<\/p>\n