The NBA is closing in on its return, and and given the leagues strict limitations for players leaving the quarantine “bubble” at Walt Disney World Resort, one wonders what they’ll do to entertain themselves aside from games and practice.
It’s not like a bunch of (very tall) grown men are going to be drinking around the world at Epcot or checking out all the rides in Magic Kingdom every day.
In a 113-page health and safety memo circulated Tuesday by the Players’ Association, protocols state that players can leave the NBA campus, but they’re strongly advised against it, as they’d have to self-quarantine for 10-14 days and will receive a reduction in pay for any game they miss.
But the memo also hinted at what players can do for leisure, as outlined by The Athletic’s Shams Charania.
Per Charania, teams will stay in three different hotels based on their seeding.
Sources: NBA teams Disney hotels based on seeding:
-Grand Destino: Bucks, Lakers, Raptors, Clippers, Celtics, Nuggets, Jazz, Heat
-Grand Floridian: Thunder, 76ers, Rockets, Pacers, Mavericks, Nets, Grizzlies, Magic
-Yacht Club: Blazers, Kings, Pelicans, Spurs, Suns, Wizards— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 16, 2020
And those hotels will have much more amenities than they typically would for your average families booking them for a vacation.
On the Orlando campus, players-only lounges will boast TVs for watching and gaming for all the NBA 2K they can handle. Additionally, they will have use of the hotel pools, walking and running trails, barbers, manicure and pedicure technicians and a 24-hour concierge system.
And along with attending other NBA games, players will have daily movie screenings, DJs on site, pool, lawn games and ping pong.
In NBA's ORL campus:
– Hotel amenities: players-only lounge (NBA 2K, TVs, gaming), pool/trails, barbers, manicurists, pedicurists
– 24-hour VIP concierge
– Daily entertainment: Movie screenings, DJ sets, video games, ping pong, pool, lawn games
– Players can attend other games— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 16, 2020
But when it comes to the ping pong games, social distancing will prevent them from playing doubles.
My favorite detail in the 113-page health-and-safety protocol for Orlando shared with teams in past several minutes: No doubles in ping pong. "Until directed otherwise by the NBA, players should play singles only so that they can maintain six feet of distance from each other."
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 17, 2020
Each team can include a player’s private personal trainer, massage therapist or security guard in with the 35 staffers each team is allotted to travel to Disney, and players are allowed to hire a personal chef for meals, as they aren’t allowed to order food from off campus.
This certainly is not ideal, and boredom likely will be unavoidable. But there definitely are worse places to be isolated in.
