At ASG, no break from virus reality
Sixers teammates Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons were ruled out of Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game after being flagged by COVID-19 contact tracing, prompting some players to question again why the exhibition was being played during a pandemic.
The 76ers and the NBA learned of the situation with Embiid and Simmons — which stemmed from getting haircuts — on Saturday night and made the decision Sunday morning that neither could play about nine hours before the scheduled tipoff.
The game in Atlanta went forward as scheduled but ended too late for this edition.
“It’s just an unfortunate time in the world where our health and safety should be at the front of the helm,” All-Star Paul George of the Clippers said Sunday from Atlanta. “I personally didn’t agree with the game but, you know, it is what it is.”
Embiid and Simmons both tested negative for COVID-19, and their barber tested positive for it. Both players saw the barber a day or two before before flying to Atlanta.
“It’s messed up,” Wizards All-Star Bradley Beal said. “Unfortunate.”
Embiid would have been a starter for Team Durant, which was coached by the 76ers’ Doc Rivers. Simmons would have been a reserve for Team LeBron. The Pelicans’ Zion Williamson started in Embiid’s place.
A number of players — All-Star captain LeBron James of the Lakers among them — openly wondered in recent weeks why the game was being played. And Sunday’s news provided a reminder of why those concerns seemed valid.
“I love our league and playing at the highest level,” James said before the game. “But I think, under the circumstances and what we’re going through still with the pandemic and everything with the season, I thought we could have looked at it a little bit differently . ... And I hate that Joel and Ben will not be able to play.”
The league and the National Basketball Players Association went ahead with plans for the game for multiple reasons, including because it paid tribute to historically Black institutions and generated at least $3 million for scholarship funds that aid Black students.
“Throughout this pandemic, we’ve sought to find the right balance between the health and safety of our players, the community that’s involved in producing NBA basketball, and of course our fans, along with the economic interests as well of our community,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Saturday in his annual All-Star address. “Add into that social justice issues . ... Again, we feel we’ve struck the appropriate balance here, looking out for the interests of everyone involved.”
The collective bargaining agreement between the league and its players also stipulated that the game be played, and Silver has said multiple times in recent weeks that millions of fans around the globe want to see the game happen.
There have been NBA 31 games this season postponed because at least one team wouldn’t have enough players eligible to play due to virus-related reasons, including positive tests and contact tracing situations.