Philadelphia 76ers' Mike Scott is Struggling to Focus on NBA's Restart

Back in March, the Philadelphia 76ers found out their season was suspended shortly after defeating the Detroit Pistons. As a case of COVID-19 was discovered in the league, sports shut down, and NBA players paused their season suddenly. 

After spending months focusing on the global pandemic, attention shifted over to racism, and police brutality in America as a Minneapolis man named George Floyd was murdered by an officer while being arrested. 

And as the NBA plans to make its way back into relevancy, Sixers veteran reserve Mike Scott admits he's having a hard time shifting focus as his team gears up for a restart. "Yeah, [it's been difficult to get excited]," Scott admitted on Monday morning. 

"Trying to change the mentality from being with the family and making sure they are safe from racism and corona[virus], then switching onto going to Orlando and playing basketball is easier said than done," he continued. 

"Most people say it should be easy, just think about basketball, but I don't know, man. It's tough to start thinking about that after everything that's been going on the last couple of months. I'm just trying to work out every day and get my mind ready for Orlando, but at the same time, how can you not focus on everything else that's going on?"

Scott, like many NBA players, wants to make sure that basketball doesn't serve as a distraction for fans away from the real world's problems. While the veteran forward plans to travel to Orlando, Florida, for the Sixers' next playoff run, he does seem torn on the idea. 

"I didn't know what was going to happen with the NBA returning," Scott said. "I kept hearing rumors that it would, and it wouldn't. My mind really wasn't on it. Now I'm trying to turn that switch on and try to get focused on Orlando to try to compete for a championship." The Sixers will travel on Thursday to partake in another training camp before beginning the last eight games of the season on August 1st. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_