Turbulent days in the NBA due to COVID-19

Every day that passes in the NBA it is a tombola. Almost every day there are players infected with COVID-19 or who were exposed to people with the virus, which means that groups of basket makers are isolated and teams do not have the necessary staff to appear on the court.

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

Sunday, the day when according to The Associated Press at least 15 players were not allowed to play for reasons related to VOCID-19, 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 what would take the possible tracking of the player’s contacts, it was decided to postpone the game. It was the second game postponed this season.

And several stellar 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 games by complying with league protocols.

“With that, we can now see the effectiveness and seriousness that a ‘bubble’ had. At that time it was perhaps a fantasy, it came true, and it worked excellently well. But they tried to make the season longer by believing that in the course of the campaign the vaccine would arrive, which did arrive, but ordinary citizens have not yet received it. And they will continue to go up and down with COVID, “said leader and analyst Tony Ruiz, in Primera Hora.

He recalled that, unlike the ‘bubble’ – set at the Disney World complex in Orlando to end last season without positive cases of coronavirus – players are not barracked at the start of the campaign even though there is no audience. in the ranks.

“We come from a festive season and they are no longer in a ‘bubble’. They are at home or in hotels. They go out, they have contact, they go to the restaurant … to share … and unfortunately they pay the price. This is the result of stretching beyond and not going from the track to your home or from your home to the track. Unfortunately this is taking its toll, “he added.

Ruiz opined that organizations should begin to “tighten nuts” regarding their anti-virus protocols and stress to their players that ultimately, the responsibility to stay healthy, as well as their family , his team and his organization, falls to the players, who given the bad decisions they make, end up affecting their work as a professional, the image of the organization and the NBA.

Equally, it would affect the mood of the viewer and fans to have to watch matches between teams with a bench that has only two or three players, or not being able to see their favorite team complete running at full capacity.

“It affects, but there is nothing else to see,” said Ruiz. “It’s an attraction for the fan. Citizens are looking for something to entertain themselves. It affects a fan, because you want to see the horses on the track, and when they’re not resting, they’re out by the protocol of the “One wonders when it will be the day for players to be consistent and play for the money they are paid.”

“Of course it affects the image, the project, the product. Organizations have to press nuts, but success is in the hands of the player. Let them take care and take care of their family, so that then they can fulfill their obligations and their organization, “he added.

Another thing Ruiz drew attention to is that it’s not just COVID-19 outbreaks. Is that the idea of ​​holding a 72-match tournament just two months after finishing the previous one, is also taking its toll on players and organizations.

“Three interesting things are happening,” Ruiz said. “First, which is the first time a professional league has less time between seasons. It was 72 days (of rest) and that’s why there are a lot of players out of condition and there are a lot of injuries. A lot. That’s a shocking thing. “It’s been less than a month and there are already injured players,” he said.

“Second, that of the VOCID, which is a very serious thing and it was seen that the impact of the second wave was coming, and even though the vaccine came out the NBA commissioner (Adam Silver) said that the players they were not going to pass over the citizenry and they were going to wait their turn to vaccinate“, It continued.

“And the third is what you give to the fanatic. They (NBA), who are usually the number one in giving a show, if you look at the standing there is not a broadly dominant team and it is extremely balanced, because every day does not “You know what you’re going to find. Players resting or in COVID protocol, incomplete teams, injured players, and I think this start to the season will be like that, but I think there has to be a time when stability comes.” explain.

The coach opined that after the bubble experience, the NBA, perhaps, thought it could move that success to a non-isolated environment, and that players would apply what has been learned in Orlando. But obviously this has not happened.

And as Silver has advanced, the season will continue unless the cases get out of hand. And it would be to be expected that when this point is reached a decision will be made or waiting for vaccination, to go back to a ‘bubble’ or some new idea.

“I don’t think they’re finished. The suspensions and incomplete equipment will continue. The vaccine is already there. The positive cases will continue until it’s their turn to be vaccinated, which then I think will improve things and move forward. to get what everyone wants, which is normal, “Ruiz said. “It’s that the cost of image, advertising and investment is too high to suspend the league.”