Uncertainty has gripped the National Basketball Association’s plan to restart its 2019-20 campaign, with a significant number of players rightly considering the personal and collegial repercussions of engaging in sports while other seemingly more pressing concerns make demands on their time. The good news is that the second-guessing, regardless of how it was spurred, has ramped up discussions on safety and civil liberties, the very discussions required to secure accession to — and ensure maintenance of — the planned bubble at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Florida.
With lives and futures literally at stake, the decision to play or not has become deeply personal; decision makers representing all those who have a skin in the game must therefore strike the right balance between risk and reward in order to guarantee an acceptable measure of success. Given the little that is still known of the pandemic and the very nature of basketball, keeping rosters and staff of the 22 teams slated to finish their respective seasons at Walt Disney World wholly free from infection is an impossibility. In this regard, the intent is to keep reaching for the ideal while preparing for the probable. What happens when — and not if — a player tests positive for the novel coronavirus? How can protagonists continue to exercise their right to contribute to the necessary discourse on social justice while essentially quarantined?
The answers to these and countless other relevant questions must be addressed and, in so doing, strengthen the league’s capacity to cope with worst-case scenarios. Thus far, the collaborationist stances taken by commissioner Adam Silver, union chief Michele Roberts, owners, and players have resulted in considerable progress on designs to resume the season. And while much more has to be done, with each step forward bringing about whole new sets of issues, all involved can at least take comfort in the fact that they’re so far ahead in the process than most other organized sports organizations, and Major League Baseball in particular.
Certainly, self-preservation can bring about universal benefits, and there is ample reason to contend that the players will be able to shine the spotlight on their cause precisely through the use of platforms their singular talents provide. Meanwhile, scuttling the current season will result in major financial losses all around, with repercussions extending to a likely lockout. Giving the thumbs-up to the playoffs isn’t simply about crowning a champion. Most importantly, it’s about getting closer to a new normal. Change will inevitably come. What’s up in the air is when.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.
