Turbulent Days in the NBA by COVID-19

Every day that passes in the NBA it is a tombola. Almost every day, players infected with COVID-19 or who have been exposed to people with the virus, isolate groups of baskets and teams do not have the necessary personnel to appear on the field.

In recent days, about nine of the 30 NBA teams have had at least one member under the league’s hygiene protocol, and on Saturday the Philadelphia Sixers had to play with seven players.

On Sunday, the day that at least 15 players were banned from playing for reasons related to COVID-19, according to The Associated Press, the game between the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat had to be postponed. Of those 15, seven were from Boston, and after the announcement of a suspicious case in Miami and how long it would take for the player to potentially track down contact, it was decided to postpone the game. It was the second game that was postponed this season.

And several star players such as Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown (Boston), Kevin Durant (Brooklyn), Michael Porter Jr. (Denver), Seth Curry (Philadelphia) and Bradley Beal (Washington) have lost matches that conform to the league’s protocols.

“With this we can now see how effective and serious a ‘bubble’ was. At the time it may have been a fantasy, it came true and it worked great. But they tried to make the season longer, believing that in the course of the campaign, the vaccine would arrive, that arrived, but ordinary citizens have not yet received it. And they will continue to go through ups and downs with COVID, ”leader and analyst Tony Ruiz analyzed against Primera Hora.

He recalled that, unlike the ‘bubble’ – which was set up in the Disney World complex in Orlando to end last season with no positive coronavirus cases – the players are not quartered at the start of the campaign, despite the fact that there is no audience in the stands.

“We are from a party season and they are no longer in a ‘bubble’. They are at home or in hotels. They go out, interact, go to the restaurant … to share … and unfortunately they pay the price. That is the result of expanding yourself further and not going from court to your home or from your home to the court. Unfortunately, that takes its toll, ”he added.

Ruiz said organizations should start “tightening the screws” in terms of their protocols against the virus and emphasize to their players that ultimately the responsibility to stay healthy, as well as their family, their team and their organization, rests. among the players who, given the bad decisions they make, end up damaging their work as professionals, the image of the organization and that of the NBA.

Likewise, watching matches between teams with a bench with only two or three players, or not being able to see their entire favorite team at full capacity, should affect the mood of viewers and fans.

“It affects, but there is nothing else to see,” Ruiz analyzed. “It’s a fan attraction. Citizens are looking for something to entertain themselves. It affects you as a fan because you want to see the horses on the field and when they are not resting they are out because of the COVID protocol. So you wonder when the day will be when the players are consistent and play for the money they get ”.

“It obviously affects the image, the project, the product. Organizations must quote the notes, but the success is in the hands of the player. That he takes care of himself and his family, so that he can then meet his obligations and his organization, ”he added.

Another thing that Ruiz drew attention to is that it’s not just the COVID-19 outbreaks. The idea of ​​hosting a 72-game tournament just two months after the previous one ended takes its toll on players and organizations as well.

“Three interesting things are happening,” said Ruiz. “Firstly, it is the first time that a professional league has had less time between seasons. It was 72 days (rest) and that is why many players are out of shape and there are many injuries. A lot of. That is shocking. We’ve been in less than a month and there are already injured players, ”he said.

“Second, the COVID thing, which is something very serious and it was seen that the impact of the second wave was on the way, and despite the vaccine coming out, the NBA commissioner (Adam Silver) said the players were not there would pass. citizenship and they would wait their turn to get vaccinatedHe continued.

And the third is what you give the fanatic. They (NBA), who are generally number one to put on a show, when you look at the booth, there is no team that dominates broadly and it is extremely balanced because you don’t know what you encounter on a daily basis. Players who are resting or covered by the COVID protocol, incomplete teams, injured players, and I think this will be the start of the season, but I think there must come a time when stability arrives, ”he explained.

The coach said that after the experience in the bubble, the NBA may have thought it could transfer that success to a non-isolated environment, and that the players would apply what they learned in Orlando. But that clearly did not happen.

And as Silver expected, the season will continue unless things get out of hand. And it would be expected that when that point is reached, a decision will be made, or wait for the vaccination, to return to a ‘bubble’ or a new idea.

‘I don’t think they won’t finish it. Suspensions and incomplete teams follow. The vaccine is already there. The positive cases will continue until it is their turn to get vaccinated, which I think will improve things and achieve earlier than everyone wants, which is normal, “Ruiz said.” It’s that. the costs of image, advertising and investment are too high to suspend competition. “