In 2020, the NBA took swift action against the COVID-19 virus. Once the first cases were confirmed, the season was halted and plans were put in place to protect the players and the community.
Now, almost two years after the initial crisis, and the NBA is facing another outbreak, with 117 players reported to have entered health and safety protocols this month.
The NBA has now hit the triple-digit mark for new players entering their health and safety protocols in December.
By my count, 117 total NBA players have entered the league’s health and safety protocols this season, with 101 new players coming this month. https://t.co/zi0irSRx0m
— Baxter Holmes (@Baxter) December 21, 2021
With no sign of things slowing down at the moment, talks about a possible postponement have been popularized in recent days.
But in a chat with Malika Andrews, NBA commissioner Adam Silver denied the NBA has any plans to pause play going forward, explaining that COVID-19 is just something the NBA, and the world, is going to have to learn how to live with.
“No plans right now to pause the season. We’ve of course looked at all the options but frankly we’re having trouble coming up with what the logic would be behind pausing right now. As we look through these cases literally ripping through the country right now, putting aside the rest of the world, I think we’re finding ourselves where we knew we were going to get to for the past several months and that is that this viruss will not be eradicated and we’re gonna have to learn to live with it. And I think that’s what we’re experiencing in the league right now.”
Commissioner Adam Silver joined NBA Today to talk about COVID in the league as Christmas Day approaches.
Silver said there are currently no plans to pause the season. pic.twitter.com/LFIPCCejnQ
— Malika Andrews (@malika_andrews) December 21, 2021
When COVID first entered the equation, nobody would have dared imagine the virus becoming a permanent part of our future.
But thanks to several variants, and more that are likely to surface going forward, COVID continues to live on and scorch countries worldwide.
For the NBA, we’re seeing a ridiculous number of players miss time due to their own positive test results, but the plan right now is to just ride it out and learn how to adapt to the new normal.
