League Office “Slammed” With Questions About Next Steps
After announcing that the 2019/20 season has been suspended indefinitely, the NBA’s league office has been “slammed” with procedural and “bigger-picture” questions from team owners and executives, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
As Wojnarowski reports, the NBA has told its teams to be patient and sit tight for now — more guidance will be provided soon, likely as early as Thursday. In the meantime, despite the fact that clubs are reportedly still permitted to hold practices, many teams around the league plan to close their facilities today and give players a couple days away, Woj notes.
The Jazz, whose starting center Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, have been among the teams most significantly affected by the crisis. As ESPN’s Royce Young details, Utah’s players and staff had to remain at Oklahoma City’s Chesapeake Energy Arena for hours after the postponement of last night’s game vs. the Thunder, undergoing tests for coronavirus. The results of those tests should be known soon, which will help the NBA determine how to move forward, tweets Chris Mannix of SI.com.
After finally leaving the arena late last night, the Jazz spent the night in the OKC area, exploring the possibility of chartering buses to get back to Salt Lake City, since there were “issues” with putting everyone on a Delta charter flight, per ESPN. According to Young (Twitter link), the organization is expected to finalize travel plans after getting the results of their tests. It’s possible they’ll fly back to Utah on two separate charter flights — one for those who tested positive and one for those who didn’t.
Here are more updates on the situation as the first day of the league’s hiatus begins:
- Sources tell Shams Charania and Tony Jones of The Athletic that Gobert has been around people who recently traveled to the U.S. from France, but there’s “no clear determination” on how he contracted COVID-19.
- ESPN’s Brian Windhorst and Tim Bontemps break down what we do and don’t know about the NBA’s suspension of play, including whether players will be paid during the stoppage and how it may affect the salary cap going forward. Meanwhile, Brian Lewis of The New York Post provides six questions the league must answer.
- By suspending its season, the NBA made the only decision it could, according to Chris Mannix of SI.com, who writes that the league shouldn’t consider a return until the virus has been “contained nationally.”
- The Pelicans/Kings game on Wednesday night was initially expected to be played even after the NBA’s suspension announcement, but it was eventually postponed due to concerns related to referee Courtney Kirkland, who worked Utah’s game on Monday. Sam Amick, Will Guillory, and Jason Jones of The Athletic share some behind-the-scenes details on a surreal night in Sacramento.
- Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, who said on Wednesday night that the franchise would develop a plan to help arena employees with lost income during the hiatus, said that the situation “isn’t about basketball,” as Tim MacMahon of ESPN relays. “This isn’t about when do we start, do we start? Or how do we start? This is a pandemic, a global pandemic where people’s lives are at stake,” Cuban said. “I’m a lot more worried about my kids and my mom who is 82 years old — in talking to her and telling her to stay in the house — than when we play in our next game.”
NBA G League Suspends Season
The NBA G League has followed the NBA’s lead, announcing tonight in a press release that it has suspended its 2019/20 season in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The news comes on the heels of the announcement that the NBA has suspended its season.
As Fred Katz of The Athletic points out (via Twitter), there are plenty of reasons why it makes sense to suspend play in the G League in conjunction with the NBA. The two leagues share not just two-way players and players on NBAGL assignments, but also several facilities. Additionally, G League teams often travel via commercial flights.
The G League’s regular season had been scheduled to end on March 28, with the postseason to follow. Tonight’s announcement indicated that play will be postponed, rather than cancelled, so if the NBA resumes play in a few weeks, the G League may follow suit. There’s no concrete timeline for that to happen though.
Latest On NBA’s Coronavirus Response
In the wake of Rudy Gobert‘s positive coronavirus test, the NBA has announced that its season will be suspended indefinitely, as we detailed earlier tonight.
While it remains to be seen exactly how long that suspension will last, one person who spoke to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press said the NBA expects the league to be shut down for at least two weeks. That source cautioned that the situation is very fluid.
As Dan Feldman of NBC Sports passes along, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said in a TV appearance tonight that there’s a feeling around the NBA that the season will eventually be resumed. It’s “clearly going to be a truncated schedule” though, according to Woj.
No games will take place while the suspension is ongoing, but Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said tonight that the NBA has told teams they can continue to practice, per Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link). Players have been told they shouldn’t have any visitors from out of town, MacMahon adds.
Here’s more on how the coronavirus situation has shaken up the NBA:
- After Gobert was tested for COVID-19 on Wednesday, Jazz and Thunder officials worked together to make sure no Oklahoma City players had any contact or exposure to Utah players, tweets Wojnarowski. According to ESPN’s Royce Young (Twitter links), Thunder players were tested tonight for fever, but not for the coronavirus. Jazz players are still expected to be tested tonight, however — the team is currently quarantined in OKC, per Woj (Twitter link).
- According to reports from Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald (Twitter link) and ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, players from teams that have played the Jazz in the last 10 days have been advised to self-quarantine. That list of clubs includes the Cavaliers, Knicks, Celtics, Pistons, and Raptors.
- Knicks players aren’t being tested yet, according to Steve Popper of Newsday (Twitter link). Blake Murphy of The Athletic tweets that Raptors players are getting tested. Cavaliers coaches and players haven’t yet heard about potential testing, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.
NBA Suspending Season Indefinitely
The NBA has announced that it will be suspending the 2019/20 regular season indefinitely after the conclusion of tonight’s games. According to the league’s announcement, it will use the hiatus to “determine next steps for moving forward in regard to the coronavirus pandemic.”
A Jazz player has tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19), the NBA confirmed in its statement, adding that the test result was reported shortly before the tipoff of tonight’s Utah/Oklahoma City game, which was ultimately postponed. Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that the affected player is Rudy Gobert.
The NBA’s Board of Governors had a conference call earlier today to discuss ways to handle the pandemic. Several teams were open to the idea of postponing all contests while many were in favor of playing without fans in the arena. The Warriors had planned to host the first game without fans on Thursday night at the Chase Center, but that game – like the rest, starting tomorrow – will no longer be played as scheduled.
In today’s discussions, the Knicks were the only team that wanted to keep the status quo with regard to fans being in the stadium amidst the coronavirus outbreak, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com tweets. The franchise wanted things to remain the same until a government or public mandate dictated a change.
According to K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago, there was talk earlier today around the NBA that if any player tested positive, all teams that played against the team with the infected player would have to be quarantined for two weeks. While 14 days has been the general rule for recent coronavirus cases, no official timeline has been set by the NBA.
In the short term, teams that have been in contact with Gobert and the Jazz in recent days will likely attempt to test their players as soon as possible. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter), Jazz and Thunder players were quarantined in the Chesapeake Energy Arena following tonight’s postponement.
For more on the story, check out our full report on Gobert’s positive test.
Pelicans-Kings Contest Postponed
The NBA has postponed Wednesday night’s Pelicans–Kings contest after initially stating that it would suspend the season once that game concluded, the Pelicans have confirmed.
One of the referees in the contest was Courtney Kirkland, who was on duty during the Jazz-Raptors game on Monday. The Kings were ready to go on the court at the time of the scheduled tip-off, while the Pelicans were pushing hard for the game not to be played, as Sam Amick of The Athletic tweets.
Earlier in the evening, Rudy Gobert tested positive for the coronavirus and the Jazz-Thunder game was postponed. Teams that have been in contact with the Jazz and Gobert in recent days are likely to get tested as soon as possible.
The NBA’s Board of Governors had a conference call earlier today to discuss ways to handle the pandemic. Several teams were open to the idea of postponing all contests while many were in favor of playing without fans in the arena. The Warriors had planned to host the first game without fans on Thursday night at the Chase Center, but that game – like the rest, starting tomorrow – will no longer be played as scheduled.
Rudy Gobert Tests Positive For Coronavirus
Jazz center Rudy Gobert has tested positive for coronavirus, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
The NBA has confirmed in a press release that a Jazz player tested positive for COVID-19, though the league didn’t specifically name Gobert as that player. The test result was reported just before tip-off of tonight’s game between Utah and Oklahoma City, which was postponed.
The affected player – presumed to be Gobert – wasn’t in the arena at that time, according to the league’s statement. Gobert was never at the Chesapeake Energy Arena tonight, ESPN’s Royce Young confirms (Twitter link).
As a result of the coronavirus crisis, the NBA will suspend the season indefinitely following the conclusion of tonight’s games.
According to reports from Charania and Young (Twitter links), even though Gobert was initially ruled out for tonight’s game with an illness, he felt strong enough to play. The league wanted confirmation that he didn’t have coronavirus before he could be cleared to play, so he was tested before the game.
Once it was determined that Gobert had tested positive, the game was immediately postponed and players and staff returned to their respective locker rooms. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter), Jazz and Thunder players are currently being quarantined in the arena.
While it’s not clear exactly when Gobert contracted the virus, he’ll face criticism for making light of the situation on Monday by going out of his way to touch every microphone and recorder in front of him following his shootaround availability (Twitter link via Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune).
Depending on how long Gobert – or others – have had the virus, the ripple effect across the NBA could be massive. As Sam Amick of The Athletic notes (via Twitter), Utah has played the Raptors, Pistons, Celtics, and Knicks in the past eight days, so players from those teams seem like good bets to be tested as soon as possible.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Thunder-Jazz Game Postponed
The Thunder–Jazz game that was set to play tonight has been postponed. According to Maddie Lee of the Oklahoman (Twitter link), the game was moved “due to unforeseen circumstances.”
According to ESPN’s Royce Young (video link), the teams were seconds away from tipping off when the Thunder’s head medical staffer sprinted on the floor to talk to referees. Players and staff were subsequently sent back to their respective locker rooms.
Rudy Gobert and Emmanuel Mudiay had both been ruled out of tonight’s game with illnesses. According to the Thunder’s broadcast, because there were illnesses among players prior to the game, the teams were waiting on NBA approval to proceed with the contest (Twitter link via Nate Duncan).
Stadium personnel were seen wiping down both the Jazz’ and Thunder’s bench areas following the postponement, according to Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter links).
Latest On The NBA’s Coronavirus Precautions
The NBA’s Board of Governors had a call with the league office earlier today and discussed plans going forward with regard to taking precautions amid the coronavirus outbreak. Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe of ESPN.com report (Twitter links) that the stakeholders have narrowed it down to two main options: play without fans in the arena or have the league take a hiatus for a period of time.
The greater consensus is to have the games go on without fans, Woj notes. The decision is expected to come as soon as Thursday on what the next steps will be.
The Warriors will play without fans in the arena on Thursday. It was reported that playing behind closed doors is expected to result in a “multi-million dollar loss”
The Sixers are among the teams that will continue to host fans, including tonight’s content against the Pistons. However, Philadelphia and other clubs have sent out memos with preventive and restrictive measures fans can and should take.
The Wizards have opted to remain open for business, for now, despite the D.C. Department of Health advising against holding non-essential gatherings of over 1,000 people. However, Washington doesn’t have a home game again until Sunday, so the decision to play without fans isn’t as urgent for the district as it is for other teams.
The NCAA announced that fans will not be allowed to attend games for the men’s and women’s tournaments this year.
Coronavirus Updates: Warriors, Cavs, Wizards, Next Steps
As we relayed earlier today, the Warriors‘ Thursday contest vs. Brooklyn is on track to become the first NBA game played without fans in attendance as a result of the coronavirus epidemic.
Discussing the situation today with reporters, Warriors president and COO Rick Welts acknowledged that it will be a costly adjustment for the franchise. As Nick Friedell of ESPN tweets, Welts said not playing Thursday’s game will result in a “multi-million dollar loss” for the Warriors, adding that the number would increase to the “tens of millions” if the team continues to play behind closed doors following its road trip.
Although the lost revenue for one Warriors game won’t have a massive impact on the basketball related income (BRI) for the NBA as a whole, it will become a more significant issue if more teams are forced to play games without fans, which seems likely.
Welts and GM Bob Myers confirmed today that the league’s BRI will be affected and that it could have an impact on the salary cap going forward, though it remains to be seen to what degree that impact will be felt (video link via Anthony Slater of The Athletic). Between this situation and the NBA’s controversy with China, the cap may not increase next season by nearly as much as initially expected.
Here are more news items and notes related to the coronavirus outbreak:
- The NBA has considered the possibility of pushing back its calendar in response to the coronavirus crisis, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic. Sources tell Amick that the NBA has been asking teams to provide its arena schedule through July. Currently, the season is expected to end no later than June 21 (if the Finals go seven games).
- The NBA and its players’ union spoke on Wednesday to discuss ways to continue the season without cancelling games, per ESPN’s Zach Lowe and Adrian Wojnarowski. It appears increasingly likely that teams around the league will be required to play in empty arenas, with the NBA bracing for losses “in the hundreds of millions of dollars,” sources tell ESPN.
- After initially recommending against mass gatherings, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said today that the state intends to issue an order saying that no spectators will be allowed at major sporting events, tweets Aaron Portzline of The Athletic. That will affect the Cavaliers, though they’re not scheduled to return home until March 24.
- After the D.C. Department of Health advised against holding non-essential gatherings of 1,000+ people, the Wizards‘ ownership group issued a statement saying that they plan to move forward with allowing fans to attend home games for now. So far, teams have been reluctant to do anything drastic unless they’re faced with a full-fledged ban from local government or an edict from the league.
- Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link) hears that at least half of the NBA’s teams have pulled their advance scouts off the road due to coronavirus concerns.
- In case you missed it, the NCAA announced this afternoon that this year’s men’s and women’s tournaments will be closed to fans.
NCAA To Hold Tournament Without Fans In Attendance
With March Madness around the corner, the NCAA’s COVID-19 advisory panel has recommended against opening up sporting events to the public, per a press release. As a result, the 2020 NCAA men’s and women’s tournaments will be held without fans in attendance, NCAA president Mark Emmert announced.
“We do believe sport events can take place with only essential personnel and limited family attendance, and this protects our players, employees, and fans,” the NCAA said in its statement.
“While I understand how disappointing this is for all fans of our sports, my decision is based on the current understanding of how COVID-19 is progressing in the United States,” Emmert said. “This decision is in the best interest of public health.”
The changing circumstances surrounding the NCAA tournament may not have a major adverse impact on NBA teams, who have had all season to scout and form opinions on the players expected to be part of the 2020 draft class. However, it will make for an unusual and surreal event, with students and hardcore supporters no longer packing arenas to cheer for their schools.
The NCAA has yet to determine whether media will be allowed into arenas for the tournament, according to Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter link).