THE COST of restarting the National Basketball Association season in a campus environment in an attempt to ensure safety is over $150 million, ESPN reported on Wednesday.
Commissioner Adam Silver and the league board of governors opted for the “bubble” site of Walt Disney World Resort to provide room and board for the 22 teams within shouting distance of the playoffs. The postseason will also be held in what the NBA hopes is a controlled environment, where players have restrictions to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
Among the costs to the NBA are daily tests for COVID-19, treatment and quarantine associated with positive tests, and meals, security, transportation, sanitation of facilities including practice gyms and staging of games at multiple stadium sites (three arenas are planned for use).
The NBA has projected a total loss exceeding $1 billion in revenue related to ticket sales by playing games at the isolated, neutral site and without fans present.
“It comes into play that we feel an obligation to our sport and to the industry to find a new normal,” Silver told Time magazine on Tuesday. “It doesn’t come into play in terms of dollars and cents because, frankly, it’s not all that economical for us to play on this campus. It’s enormously expensive.”
LILLARD EXPRESSES CONCERN
Meanwhile, the NBA’s ability to complete the season depends on participants following the rules to keep everyone inside free from the coronavirus, something that is not easy to achieve, said Portland’s Damian Lillard.
The Portland Trail Blazers’ All-Star guard said Wednesday regarding strict adherence to isolating protocols, “My confidence ain’t great because you’re telling me you’re gonna have 22 teams full of players following all the rules? When we have 100 percent freedom, everybody don’t follow all the rules.
“I don’t have much confidence, but hopefully it’ll be handled to a point where we’re not putting everybody at risk or in a dangerous position.”
Players and staffers will be tested for COVID-19 upon their arrival at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex near Orlando. Following a period of self-quarantine for 36 to 48 hours, they will be tested again. After that, there will be regular testing, and newcomers (including family members) won’t be allowed into the “bubble” until after the first round of the playoffs — more than a month after the players arrive in central Florida. — Reuters
