Read on Twitter
NBA is just trying to do the best they can with all of this. Know it’s frustrating to players, but the alternative is shutting it down and no one getting paid
I’m not “capping” for them. This entire thing has been a process. They haven’t been perfect. COVID-19 is a disease everyone has struggled to figure out. They are trying to keep the league going so everyone can keep making $. The alternatives are much worse https://twitter.com/gervais_grant/status/1357933701011804160
Players do not want to go back into a bubble situation for the 2nd half and playoffs. Again, alternatives are worse. https://twitter.com/aintnothinnice/status/1357998190306316289
They’re CONSIDERING having an All-Star Game because TV partners and sponsors are obviously pushing for that to happen. It’s a profit center for the league and players. Again, this is a business. Players (through PA) have the power to weigh the pros and cons of the plan and pass. https://twitter.com/unclekyriedrew1/status/1357896049776590849
It’s obvious a lot of players didn’t understand there was even a possibility of an All-Star Game. That was a failure of communication either by the league, The PA or both. That sucks and is a big reason I think you’re seeing the backlash. Guys were expecting that time off.
I think a lot of fans and media automatically go to “shut it down” or “bubble” mode whenever there’s an issue. The league expected issues. There’s an $8 billion a year biz at stake. They are trying to salvage as much of that as possible. Players and teams split that up evenly.
The ancillary players that are impacted from an NBA shutdown is a lot deeper than those directly impacted by loss of the NBA’s own revenue. People that work for media partners, sponsorship partners, arenas + operations partners, etc all are at risk of losing jobs/being furloughed
...And the bubble option is a nuclear one that both parties want to avoid unless that’s the only way to prevent a full shutdown/loss of revenues.
So yeah, it’s easy to get on Twitter and be critical and shout things like “shut it down” or “bubble” but as always, it’s a lot more complicated than that.
Yeah, I’m not privy to all of the possible scheduling alternatives that were weighed and all the scheduling variables involved that caused them to land on this. Operations/logistics nightmare when you factor in national media partner demands and calendar pressures later in year https://twitter.com/mwteller/status/1358015672350109697
