By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter

HAVING SURPASSED their collective expectations and were in the groove before the National Basketball Association called for a suspension of the season last month over the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James is hoping for league action to resume if conditions permit and finish what they have started.

Forced to stop play on March 11 after one of its players tested positive for the highly contagious respiratory disease, the NBA is in a wait-and-see position, awaiting how the episode with COVID-19 develops before deciding on whether to continue with the season or not.

The Association said it is looking at the month of May where it can make concrete decisions moving forward.

For James, considering the position they were in at the time of the suspension of league action, he would love to see the season continue this year, believing that they were on to something and had a good chance of winning a title in just his second year with the purple and gold.

Overcoming the early challenges put in front of them, James said it is but fitting to have a closure to it all.

“I don’t know if I will have any closure. I will have some satisfaction over what we were able to achieve but closure I don’t think so [if the season does not resume],” said James in a media call, the audio file of which was shared to BusinessWorld by the league.

The three-time NBA champion said as a group they have accomplished a lot up to the point of the suspension.

“We have a first-year coach (Frank Voegl), first-year system, a whole new coaching system, bringing in so many new faces into our team this year. We did things that honestly I did not think we will be able to do as fast as we did. But I was wrong,” James said.

The Lakers were rolling when NBA play was halted, sporting a Western Conference-leading 49-14 record, second in all of the league behind the Milwaukee Bucks (53-12), and having won eight of their last 10 games.

“We are in a position to go for a championship and we are looking to resuming if conditions permit,” said the 16-time NBA All-star, who joined the Lakers in 2018 after playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat where he won league titles.

But James recognizes that for the season to resume it all depends on how things would work out in the battle with COVID-19, underscoring that the safety of everyone is primary above all things.

“Obviously we know what is more important is the safety of the Americans the other people in the world, the need to control this and be in a place where we can resume and that’s the thing for me,” said James.

He, however, remains optimistic, as with other things in life, that things will work out for the better.

“Mentally I’m pretty much optimistic of everything. It’s a roadblock for us, not only for us Americans but for the world. It’s a test for us. A test for our spirit. We have gone comfortable with our daily life and now it’s time to take a pause. I’m optimistic not only of basketball but sports in general; not only the NBA, the Lakers but every sport. We play this and we have relatives who play sports. You guys (media) cover them and we miss that. But there is a greener side on everything and I’m staying positive,” he said.

While on a forced break, James said he is keeping himself busy, both body and mind, to be in the best shape possible if they are called up to play once again.

He said collective rhythm will be a challenge for every team when things resume and how fast they recover would determine how far they go.

“Getting back into a rhythm will be a challenge. Teams play at such a high level and you are prone to slippage with teams not being able to practice and train. So it’s going to be a challenge,” James said.

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