01.30.2022 Written by Jeevanr Inbasagaran

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The NBA is up there with the NFL in popularity these days, and like all sports organizations, it had to find a way to combat the pandemic. When Covid-19 first emerged in the NBA in 2020, it immediately shut down the entire season until they opened the bubble. The bubble was an isolated stadium in Orlando in which all players stayed in hotels and were constrained within the area until the season ended. As effective as it was at enforcing safety, the games felt empty. This was both literally and figuratively, as there was an absence of people, fans, and home crowd support. However, with the new surge in Covid-19 cases, the president of the NBA has decided to keep moving forward with the season even though many teams are missing more than half of their rosters due to Covid. 

 

In my opinion, I think this is unreasonable for two reasons. First of all, the safety of many players is compromised. Considering that the vaccine is less effective with the new Omicron variant, players are very susceptible to the virus. On top of that, the entertainment factor of the NBA is affected negatively with the popular teams and players being absent due to contracting the virus. As a result, many of the games are unfair, and this can make games less exciting to watch.

 

However, the NBA is focused on the potential financial loss that they could suffer if they postpone or make major changes to the season. However, is it important to prioritize the health of players or the financial factors? That is the question that many sports teams will be forced to answer as the world continues to battle Covid-19.