Video: Will The NBA Allow Players With Health Concerns to sit out if Season Resumes
It's a good bet that even if the NBA season resumes, some players won't feel safe being in close contact with one another. The Cavaliers, Larry Nance Jr., uses therapy to help with his preexisting condition of Choron's disease, but the treatment also suppresses his immune system.
Nance says, "I would hope there would be an understanding [from the league] if someone didn't feel comfortable coming back that'd you get a pass,"... "Just because you may look like the picture of health, some people have issues you can't see."
Nance has become a little more relaxed in recent weeks after hearing from gastrointestinal specialists that the drug he's been taking the past 10 years has shown to fight infection for some people who have his condition. However, if Nance or any other player would choose to sit out due to his health concerns, how would their font office react?
This topic came up on ESPN's The Jump over the last couple of days, and host Rachel Nichols bought up some valid points that could be considered if a player would rather not play during the COVID-19 pandemic. One scenario has teams treating the player as if he is injured. He would still get paid the money owed on his contract, and his year would count, the organization just wouldn't get his services.
Another option has the player's choice not to play being viewed as hold out. In this case, he would not be paid, and he would have to serve that year the following season.
Nichols says, "I'm not saying pay should be withheld as a strike against them it just complicated in the contract year."..."You can either treat them as quote "injured," which means they get paid, and their contract year continues, and it just uses up that year."
"If you're a team like the Clippers say, only has Kawhi Leonard under contract without his player option kicking in for two seasons, and this is one of them you may want him back."
Clippers coach Doc Rivers will be on the bench if his team gets the opportunity to finish out the season, but he's not critical of anyone who wants to pass on coming back. Rivers says he wouldn't sit out.
" I would not. I would not because I think by the time we do that, we have probably gone through every scenario, and I feel like they would make us safe"... "And I think it's ok though for anyone who is uncomfortable I hope they come forward and say that they're uncomfortable."
" I think that would be ok, and I think we can still have the league and our games with a few people being uncomfortable." The Athletic is reporting that the NBA has a plan in place to have teams practicing by mid-June and playing by mid-July, maybe by then anyone who has concerns will be more comfortable being on a court with other players.
