38 SPORTS ILLUSTRATED
But even with athletes sidelined and leagues suspended
until further notice, sports can play a critical role. And it’s
one that, ultimately, is likely to end up being more mean-
ingful than providing a few hours’ diversion. So far sports
have been a fun-house mirror refracting us all. When a
7' 1" center, age 27, is not immune to the coronavirus, it
is a good sign we all ought to take precautions seriously.
When entire leagues are closing shop, it’s a good sign
those who can work from home ought to as well. The
multiples may be different, but athletes are worrying
about their finances during this indeterminate period of
unemployment. In living without sports, we realize we
are living with sports. As Nets center DeAndre Jordan
said when spotted shopping for groceries in Brooklyn on
March 14, “I’m in the same boat you are.”
This crisis has shown that sports are not as bloated
as we might think. Yes, leagues today—and therefore
athletes today—make more revenue from media rights
deals than from the folks going through the turnstiles
and sitting in the stands. But the idea that sports have
drifted so far into entertainment that games ought to
be played on soundstages? That’s been disproved this
month. Watch a game played in front of empty seats and
it makes you appreciate how much texture comes from
the folks who have paid for tickets—which athletes seem
to know intuitively. As LeBron James was quick to put
it when asked about playing in a “closed door” arena:
“Obviously, I would be very disappointed not having the
fans, because that is what I play for.”
At the same time, sports have led, their leaders consis-
tently putting health, safety and common sense ahead of
commerce (often before other sectors). When the organiz-
ers of the Indian Wells tennis tournament announced its
cancellation on March 8, the eve of the event, the decision
was criticized. Within a day, it was validated. When the Ivy
League announced it would cancel spring sports, critics
barely had time to clear their throats before most colleges
in the U.S. were sending all students home.
In some cases the collective response of sports is simply
practical. Athletes share locker rooms, f ly frequently and
often work in close physical contact. (“Social distancing”
is going to reflect poorly in your plus-minus.) What’s
more, in recent years sports have leaned toward relying
on science and data and away from intuition.
And then there is this: One of the great virtues of
sports resides in the fact that, like life, aren’t scripted or
choreographed. A 35-year-old man can bounce back from
a dismal NBA season and become an MVP contender.
World Series champions can disgrace themselves by steal-
ing signs that they then convey by banging on garbage
cans. One popular NFL broadcaster can make $1 million
per game, while another can be the subject of a trade
rumor. (And those are just examples ripped from 2020.)
In the sports culture of anything can happen, you come
to respect the world of the unknown. And Lord knows
that’s where we’re all living right now. —L. Jon Wertheim¬WHERE WERE
you when the
news broke?
I was at the
YMCA, coaching
my 11-year-
old daughter’s
basketball team,
the Porcupines.
Afterward, I passed
another youth
coach on the stairs.
“It sucks they
canceled theseason,” he said.
“At least we got
in one last practice,”
I responded.
He stared. Then
it dawned on me:
He wasn’t talking
about youth hoops.
I grabbed my
phone: The NBA had
Y\Zfd\k_\Óijk
major U.S. league to
suspend its season,
domino one in aSTOPPED
TIME
LIKE ALL OF US, STEVE KERR
AND THE WARRIORS ARE WRESTLING
WITH A NEW REALITYGREG (^) N
ELS
ON