Report: Several Dozen NBA Players Do Not Want To Resume The Season
The NBA is making strides to get the season started back up.
Roughly a week ago, the league’s board of governors and the players’ union both approved plans for a 22-team. The eight-game, regular-season wrap-up would be followed by a play-in tournament for the eighth playoff seed, which will resume the 2019-20 season on July 31 inside Walt Disney World’s ESPN Wide World of Sports complex.
The league has stated that players are not being forced to come back and play if they do not choose to. But what happens when you have a “several dozen” of NBA players, including stars who do not want to finish the season?
The league has set several testing and protocols in place to ensure the safety of the players. However, some players still do not wish to put themselves at risk. In addition, in recent weeks, many NBA players have been participating in protests advocating for racial justice, particularly in policing.
With that playing a factor as well, several players don’t want to lace up their shoes until more is done on social and racial injustice issues.
Those players can choose to stay home and not participate in the resuming of the league and will not be punished by the team or league; they will, however, sacrifice some portion of their pay reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. He also stated that the NBA and the National Basketball Players’ Association are negotiating the terms of that right now.
Currently, most of the “several dozen” players which range from about 50 to 60 players who do not wish to participate are remaining anonymous.
Once the season continues, if players are missing on the floor, that’s when fans will know who decided to rule themselves out. Only players rehabbing from injuries such as Kevin Durant and John Wall have ruled themselves out entirely. Other players who spoke about possibly sitting out included Kyrie Irving, as well as Dwight Howard, and Carmelo Anthony, who are just a few who have also ruled themselves out of playing.
It all makes sense when put into perspective, with the coronavirus in the U.S. getting ready to experience a second surge, the idea of spending months bubbled inside Disney World might not be so appealing.
Irving suggests that the season should possibly be canceled altogether. Irving’s stance has pitted him against the establishments that have already been made by the league, which includes his former teammate on the Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron James.
At the moment, you have players such as LeBron James and Anthony Davis, who are ready to hit the floor and play. But what if you have other star players who may refuse to play, such as players on top contenders like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kawhi Leonard, and Paul George? That is when the league may want to reconsider things.
It has been estimated that players are already missing out on $300 million in salary alone. Terminating the rest of the season would then cost another 25% salary. Entirely, NBA players would be estimated to lose about $1.2 billion in salary this season.
Then the questions start to arise, just how much risk someone is willing to take right now is a personal decision. For the players, there are more things to consider than just resuming the season. If a player with a child who is compromised in some way and at higher risk from the disease, they may want to accept far less risk than a single 22-year-old without children. Also, you also have players with health conditions that put them at higher risk from COVID-19.
In the end, as the continuation of the season draws near, we will begin to see just how many players will be willing to stay home. If the numbers begin to increase, we may possibly see a termination of the season altogether.
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Terence Smith
Twitter: @TerenceSmithFSM
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