The NBA recently asked teams to implement measures in the case that they would have to play games without fans in attendance due to coronavirus concerns. This would limit games to only those who they deemed “essential staff.”
This means that media, lower-level staffers, and other typical attendees would be excluded from the games. The NBA also reportedly purposed the idea of having “temperature checks” for coaches, referees, and players.
This comes just a few days after the NBA released a memo with recommendations regarding the coronavirus outbreak. The memo included engaging in less hand to hand interactions, washing hands for at least 20 seconds, using hand sanitizer, and “avoid taking items (pens, markers, balls, jerseys, etc.) from fans to sign autographs.”
Players seemed to scold at the idea of playing games without fans. After his 113-103 win over the Bucks on Friday (Mar 6), LeBron James said “Nah, that’s impossible. I ain’t playing. If I ain’t got the fans in the crowd, that’s what I play for. I play for my teammates, I play for the fans. That’s what it’s all about. If I show up to an arena, and there ain’t no fans there? I ain’t playing. So, they could do what they want to do.”
Kemba Walker also had something to say about the NBA’s coronavirus plan. “That would be terrible. That would be boring. They might as well cancel the whole game before that. That would suck. But at the end of the day, it is getting serious. I don’t know. It would be very weird though for sure.”
