Kyrie Irving got an apology from ESPN's Stephen A. Smith for his decision not to get vaccinated during the pandemic. This made me think about other athletes who deserve apologies from the media for their courage during the pandemic.

Protesters supported basketball player Kyrie Irving outside the Barclays Center before a game between the Brooklyn Nets and the Charlotte Hornets.

Stephen A. Smith only speaks up about important issues when it's politically acceptable.

Novak Djokovic holds the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup after winning the Australian Open tennis championship.

No athlete became more synonymous with the vaccine debate than Novak Djokovic, who I like to call Novax.

Djokovic said medical decisions should remain a matter of personal choice and preached a message of bodily autonomy regarding COVID-19.

In 2020, Djokovic stated he was opposed to vaccination if someone forced him to take a vaccine to travel. Two years later, he reiterated that he was never against vaccination but supported the freedom to choose what to put in his body.

Despite his statements, the media portrayed Djokovic as anti-vaccine and a villain.

Time magazine published articles criticizing Djokovic, and Vanity Fair ran a story about the right wing rallying around him over his vaccine stance.

The consequences for Djokovic extended beyond media criticism, as Australia canceled his visa before the 2022 Australian Open, and he was deported and unable to compete.

The mistreatment of Djokovic cost him millions of dollars and potentially a major or two, affecting the record books and his pocketbook.

The apology from tennis and mainstream media should be just as loud as the criticism.

Tyler Bertuzzi, then a Detroit Red Wings forward, became one of the NHL's most recognizable unvaccxed players.

Bertuzzi offered little public commentary beyond confirming he had chosen not to be vaccinated, saying it was a personal choice and freedom of choice.

What made his case special is that he's Canadian, and due to his lack of vaccination, he wasn't allowed to play in or travel to his home country during the season.

The NHL never required players to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, but Canada's border policy prohibited most unvaccxed foreign nationals from entering the country.

The media labeled Bertuzzi's decision as short-sighted and selfish, and we have yet to hear one hockey media member or outlet apologize to him.

Switzerland fired a hockey coach who admitted to faking his vaccination status for the 2022 Beijing Olympics.

Buffalo Bills receiver Cole Beasley addressed the media following practice at NFL football training camp.

The now-retired Cole Beasley emerged as perhaps the NFL's most outspoken critic of COVID-19 vaccine mandates, along with Aaron Rodgers.

Beasley openly challenged league policies and defended players' right to make their own medical decisions, saying he'd live his life like he wanted to.

Those statements generated enormous media attention, with ESPN, CNN, and countless newspapers and opinion writers regularly covering Beasley's comments.

The NFL did not require players to be vaccinated but made life difficult for those who refused, establishing different protocols based on vaccination status.

Beasley called out the league for holding him out of a crucial game against the New England Patriots in December 2021 because he tested positive for COVID.

The NFL warned that teams experiencing outbreaks among unvaccxed players could potentially forfeit games if contests could not be rescheduled.

No media member or outlet has publicly apologized to Beasley.

Anthony Fauci's lawyer said Aaron Rodgers should stick to football after scorching him on Pat McAfee's show.

Orlando Magic forward Jonathan Isaac stood and did not wear a Black Lives Matter t-shirt prior to a game against the Brooklyn Nets.

Isaac became one of the NBA's most prominent voices defending individual choice during the pandemic.

At the NBA's 2021 Media Day, Isaac stated he was not anti-vax, and he believed natural immunity played a role in his personal decision.

His press conference quickly became one of the most widely discussed media sessions of the NBA season.

Many critics in the media claimed Isaac was anti-science, selfish, and spewing right-wing propaganda.

Rolling Stone named Isaac for his anti-vax stance, but he destroyed that claim, stating he was badly misrepresented.

Unlike some professional leagues, the NBA never implemented a league-wide vaccine mandate, and local government rules created different circumstances for players.

Isaac played in Florida, where no comparable local mandate prevented him from competing, and he was never suspended or barred from playing solely because of his vaccination status.

While Isaac didn't suffer financially like Irving, he was a bold voice who received a lot of vitriol from the media, and no apologies have been offered.

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Each athlete became the subject of intense public debate and received significant criticism from portions of the media, with some losing massive amounts of money for their bold stances.

These athletes deserve our love and respect for being catalysts for change and encouraging Americans and Canadians to stand firm in their convictions.

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While I don't expect media members and outlets to take accountability and humble themselves regarding the COVID vaccine, one courageous athlete has received his apology.

Jon is a writer and content creator for OutKick.