Kyrie Irving to rejoin Nets part-time: What to know as All-Star returns for games outside New York and Toronto

Irving has not played this season, but he is starting the return to play process

The Brooklyn Nets may soon have their big three back together. Kyrie Irving, who has not played this season due to his unvaccinated status, has started the process to return to the Nets, the team announced on Friday. Irving does not plan to get vaccinated, which means he will return as a part-time player, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. 

At this point, it is unclear when Irving will get back on the court. The Nets will need to assess his fitness level, and he'll have to go through the health and safety protocols, which include extensive COVID-19 testing. And once he's been cleared he'll then only be allowed to play on the road due to New York City's vaccine mandate. 

In any case, the key fact here is that with a roster in disarray due to injuries and COVID, and the season not going quite as smoothly as they'd hoped, the Nets have backed off from their stance that Irving would not be allowed to participate as a part-time player. He will, at some point, play basketball this season.