Wednesday March 11, 2020, 8:37 p.m. It was at this precise moment that everything changed in the NBA and in the world of American sport in general. That evening, through a press release published at 2:37 a.m. French time, the authorities of the main basketball league on the planet effectively took a drastic and unprecedented measure in history: interrupting the current season in order to prevent that Covid-19 does not spread within it.
Read also: The moment the 2019/20 season ended
The trigger for this radical and unexpected decision: the contamination of Rudy Gobert. A real stroke of luck for the Frenchman, who joked a few days earlier about the virus and the epidemic situation, by touching the microphones and telephones of journalists present at a press conference…
« It was the first day after we learned that journalists could no longer interview us and stand near us. “, then remembered the double All-Star. ” We didn’t know much about this disease at the time, so I just wanted to lighten the mood. But, in hindsight, I obviously should never have done that. […] Becoming the first NBA player to test positive shook me up mentally. »
Sent to the front, Adam Silver must react urgently
Still, the Jazz pivot led, despite himself and with his Covid-19 contamination, to the suspension of the 2019/20 season, for a period of finally four and a half months. And, this, a few minutes from the match of his team on the floor of the Thunder. At a time when the NBA was already planning to take measures vis-à-vis the deterioration of the health situation in the United States.
« In a meeting with Michele Roberts [présidente du syndicat des joueurs, ndlr]we had discussed the possibility of playing matches in front of fewer spectators “, confides the commissioner Adam Silver, to the New York Times, a year after the events. ” We also spoke with the various owners of the franchises to discuss the situation and to know the opinion of each team. But we hadn’t made any decision at that time. »
Until this thunderclap caused by the contamination of Rudy Gobert, therefore.
« I had just left my office to go home, when my adviser called me “, then tells the boss of the NBA. ” He then told me that he had just learned of Rudy Gobert’s positive test. But I did not directly answer: ‘Stop everything’. I wanted to know the recommendations of the Oklahoma State Chief Health Officer first. In the next ten minutes, I also spoke to Sam Presti and Clay Bennett, the GM and owner of the Thunder, as the players were getting ready to start their game. So I sat in my car, in front of my house, for ten minutes. Then I took the decision to cancel this match because it was obvious that we had to do it. Then we posted a note to explain that we were suspending the season pending more information on the situation. Until that precise moment, we still had the feeling that it was possible to manage events on a case-by-case basis. »
But Adam Silver could see that the situation was starting to get out of hand and that he therefore had to act quickly to prevent it from becoming even more critical. This March 11, 2020, all that remained was to take charge of the players from Utah, who had become in spite of themselves the “guinea pigs” of this NBA in unknown territory.
« The night then continued until very late because our main question concerned Jazz “, admits the commissioner. ” Rudy Gobert having been in direct contact with his teammates, we did not know what was going to happen to them. At some point, Sam Presti started arranging cots for them to sleep in the hall, as we weren’t sure if it was a good idea to let them go to a hotel. And it was only around midnight that we booked a hotel for them. »
A different physical impact depending on the players
Another player tested positive for Covid-19 among the first, in addition to Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell: Christian Wood. Then a member of the Pistons, with whom he revealed himself by achieving a superb month of February 2020, the interior was present on the floors on March 11 of that same year, against the Sixers. And, this, while he was suffering from Covid-19 and not from a simple cold, as initially announced by Detroit doctors.
« It was crazy “, remembers, for the Houston Chronicle, the one who now plays for the Rockets. ” Before the match, [la NBA] said she could suspend games, but we weren’t sure. No one really believed it, until she did. And that’s when a bond began to be made [entre Rudy Gobert et moi]. I was scared and shaken. Then I was diagnosed positive. Then everyone was trying to figure out how to see family or travel home. […] For my part, I was looking for solutions to keep myself in shape and get back on top. I also thought that I had made a lot of progress. [sur la fin de cette saison-là]. It may sound crazy but I was more like ‘Damn, they just suspended my season!’ that ‘Damn, I caught the Covid-19!’. So everything was really crazy and amazing, because it had never happened before. »
In full recovery, or rather in full attempt to return to his best level, Victor Oladipo was also slowed down in full swing, when the suspension of the season was decreed. Not because he was contaminated in turn, but because he was never able to chain the matches in order to find his rhythm. Even less in this “bubble” of Orlando where he hesitated for a long time before going, with the Pacers.
« I had neither the resources nor the tools to make the best use of my time “, underlines the neo-Rocket, in the columns of ESPN. ” We couldn’t go anywhere and I had to do everything from a garage. [Avant la « bulle »], so I wondered if I should go. Not because I was undecided but because I didn’t know if I was physically ready enough. I wanted to help my team but, at the same time, I didn’t want to handicap them by playing or hurting myself more. [Au final], I wasn’t even 100% there. It was screaming. But I was glad I did. »
Over the weeks, the cases of Covid-19 have in any case multiplied within the League, like what has been observed in the United States and around the world. Some, like Jrue Holiday or Eric Gordon, have also been able to see for themselves the effects of Covid-19 on their body. Like Jayson Tatum, Luc Mbah a Moute, James Ennis or even Robert Williams before them.
To read also: What impact and what consequences on the physique of the players?
« I felt slower [à mon retour] “, recognizes the leader of the Bucks. ” With its symptoms, [le Covid-19] was unpleasant, due to body aches and chills. It wasn’t always fun but I really made sure to keep my mind busy. […] Despite everything, I am happy that my entourage is fine, just like me. »
« I caught it a few weeks after the suspension [de la saison] “, delivers on his side the back of the Rockets. ” And it was hard. It really affects your breathing. I also had severe headaches. We, [les joueurs NBA], we had the same symptoms as everyone else. We are in good shape but it still attacks your lungs. »
Others, like Mo Bamba, Nassir Little, or even Rudy Gobert, however, took a little longer – if not a lot longer – before being completely rid of the complications caused by Covid-19. Unlike Marcus Smart, one of the players who suffered no after-effects.
Emotions put to the test
But, for the players, the repercussions due to Covid-19 were not only felt physically. Indeed, on the emotional level, the damage has also been heavy for some, who have lost loved ones since the appearance of this epidemic. This is particularly the case of Karl-Anthony Towns. Same for Jusuf Nurkic.
“I lived through difficult times, starting with the death of my mother”recognized the pivot of the Wolves. “I saw many coffins [ces derniers mois]. Many members of my family have caught Covid-19. I’m still looking for answers, a way to keep them healthy. It’s a lot of responsibility for me, keeping my family well informed and taking all the necessary steps to keep them alive. […] It will be hard to play [maintenant]. I don’t think basketball will be therapy for me again. It will be a chance to relive good memories. »
Good memories which were also deprived of Miles Bridges, he who was recently confronted with the loss of his mentor: Pastor Kevelin B. Jones Sr. A disappearance which has long prevented him from focusing on basketball.
« He was truly a great inspiration to me as I grew up and lived with [sa famille] during sometime “Explains the Hornets winger. “ I was treated like a full member of their family. […] [Sa disparition] really touched me a lot and that’s why I want people to continue to be careful, wear their masks and adopt the right behaviors. »
As for Myles Turner, whose father was ill for a long time before overcoming Covid-19, he was luckier than his counterparts at this level. Although his emotions were also strained.
« It was such an uncertain time… “, Considers the pivot of the Pacers. ” When [mon père] got hit by the virus, I didn’t know what to think. I didn’t know if he was going [passer cet obstacle] or not. Even he wasn’t sure how to get over it, so it was hard. And with all the stories we were hearing about it, the whole family obviously freaked out. At one point, when he was just walking from the kitchen to his bedroom, he was out of breath. He had to rebuild his respiratory system. [Aujourd’hui], we still haven’t resumed a normal social life. We take this very seriously because you never want to be the person who spoils everyone else’s efforts. »
Heavy economic consequences
Of course, in addition to the physical and emotional aspects, the Covid-19 has also had an impact from an economic point of view, the league having played behind closed doors for a long time, before fully reopening its halls this season. But the virus is still dragging on, the Omicron wave having still quite disrupted the campaign in November/December.
To avoid, among other things, a significant collapse of the salary cap, the players – and more generally the entire NBA microcosm – had agreed to partially reduce their salaries, while the league artificially maintained the “salary cap” in order to absorb the effects of the crisis. As for franchise employees, many of them have been furloughed for months, or even dismissed outright to limit spending.
To come back, to finish, to this famous March 11, 2020, the last meetings planned in the rest of the country on this decisive evening, and started before the announcement of the suspension of the season, were in any case able to end. With, in particular, Vince Carter’s final basket in the NBA during a Hawks / Knicks synonymous, for him, with the end of his career. A few weeks later, “Vinsanity” effectively resigned itself to retiring, without having been able to benefit from the dream outcome.
Symbol, here again, of this year 2020 which is as strange as it is dramatic, in many respects. And it is not the late Kobe Bryant and David Stern who would say the opposite…
As many League players, such as Tad Brown (President of the Rockets) and Mark Cuban (Owner of the Mavericks) put it so well: “ Everything changed on March 11 [2020] “after this” wrap ” who ” looked like a movie scene has come true.
Article originally published on March 11, 2021
