COVID Starts NBA Season Undefeated: Should the NBA return to the bubble format?
Almost daily, the NBA postpones a game, frustrating both fans and players. After the NBA completed its 2019-2020 season in the four-month Orlando bubble, they decided to take one step closer to normal for the following season. During the period in the bubble, the NBA reported zero COVID-19 cases. In contrast, during the first few weeks of the 2021 NBA season, the league has already recorded multiple cases amongst teams. As a result, many games were postponed, complicating the league schedule for the season. The NBA should consider returning to the bubble format. Since the format has proven to work, returning to it for the remainder of the regular season would allow the NBA to stabilize the season.
The non-bubble format was already collapsing during the second day of the season. On December 23, the NBA postponed its first game, a matchup between the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder. The cancellation came soon after former Rockets star James Harden was spotted at a club and caught on video, violating league protocol. The league, however, claimed that they postponed the game because three Rockets players had positive or inconclusive COVID-19 test results, four others quarantined due to contact tracing, and another was injured. In total, the Rockets would have had eight players absent for that game, and as the season continues, more teams have started to face similar situations with missing players.
On January 10, the NBA postponed its second game, a match between the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics, because the Heat lacked a minimum of eight available players. This situation has become typical; since then, the NBA has postponed a game nearly every day. This mounting number of postponed games will ultimately disrupt the league schedule, as the NBA will have to determine future dates for all of these games to take place. Rescheduling will be difficult since many teams already have a fair amount of games postponed, and under the current format, the NBA will have to squeeze several back-to-back games in the last few weeks of the season.
A return to the bubble format for the remainder of the regular season would lead to fewer COVID-19 cases and fewer postponed games. The NBA would effectively progress through a season that finishes on time and has fewer sick players. However, the bubble does have a downside: players would have little time to spend with family.
Even under the current format, players have fumed over “stringent” protocols that limit the opportunities players can spend with other people. For example, in January, OKC Thunder guard George Hill said, “If I wanna go see my family, I'm gonna go see my family. They can't tell me I have to stay in the room 24/7. If it’s that serious then maybe we shouldn't be playing.”
Even if the NBA were to return to the bubble, players would have to choose whether they prioritize basketball (particularly their million-dollar salary) over their family. This choice is difficult, but, like Orlando, the NBA would likely allow players to bring 1-2 family members to the bubble with them.
Teams would also not play in their home arenas anymore, but the impact this change would have on the results of games is minimal, especially since there are no fans who can attend games this season. In fact, the current format will likely result in more inaccuracy with teams’ wins and losses because oftentimes, key players are not available due to the NBA health and safety protocol. For instance, on January 9, the Philadelphia 76ers played the Denver Nuggets in a loss with only eight players available. Among the players out were stars Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons. If Embiid and Simmons were to play that game, the results would surely have been different.
With so much unknown about the virus, it would undoubtedly be the right decision for the league to take more measures to protect the health and safety of players, coaches, and team staff. The new format for this season has not proven to work to the desired extent; on the other hand, the bubble worked rather perfectly. The NBA should consider this change to avoid more cases of COVID-19, postponed games, and missing players, which are all inevitable if the league keeps its current format. With the increasing amount of coronavirus cases and postponed games, the NBA has two options: quarantine its players or quit the season.
