Today is the day. After 141 days without NBA games that count, there will be a jump ball that matters tonight! As exciting as that is, and please don’t get me wrong – it is very exciting, I can’t help but look at the NBA created bubble and cautiously hold my breath.
I blame Gianni.
Gianni co-hosted a podcast with me a while ago and said something I can’t shake. By the way, off topic for a second, but if you haven’t been following our podcasts and video streams – do it! Thank you! Ok, back to Gianni, he said something along the lines of “If the NBA bubble doesn’t work then we will be without sports for a while to come.”
Um, ya!
As if that wasn’t clear when he said it, it is more evident today if you follow MLB. Professional baseball came back without a bubble. Not so much because they didn’t want to, more likely because creating a bubble to play baseball in is bit tougher than hosting a game played on a 94 by 50 hunk of wood. Please comment if you get that reference and you will be my best friend!
If you haven’t been following baseball you may not know that 19 members of the Miami Marlins have tested positive for the virus effectively ending their season. MLB tried to start their season without a bubble and well, it hasn’t worked. So, what if the NBA’s bubble, which by all accounts amounts to the very best option for playing team sports in this environment, doesn’t work?
Adam Silver has said he cannot guarantee the season will continue and that a significant spread of the virus would mean a second suspension. Let’s be honest, another suspension would mean a cancellation of the 2019-20 season. Ugh, I actually feel bad even writing that, but we have to face the possibility. That being said, the NBA continues to march on with no positive tests!
The NBA bubble is working!
My hope, no doubt your hope, is that this trend continues. It has to because in a very real way, if this bubble bursts it is going to take down sports for a long time. Not just basketball, but all sports. A lot is riding on the 2019-20 NBA season and I am glad that Adam Silver and his team is in charge. It is thanks to their effort to stop the season when they did, to envision and implement this bubble and to be realistic about the prospects that we are on the verge of playing ball again!
The NBA got it right!
Now, its time to sit back and watch the drama of the season play out. Lets hope this is the last virus related article on this site. It’s time for NBA basketball!
