The WNBA is back. But who's playing, and how safe will it be?
Hello, it’s me, Matt Ellentuck.
Sorry it’s been a while. I needed a break. I’ve spent the last few weeks reading, watching and learning how to be a better friend and ally, supporting Black Lives Matter and helping dismantle systemic racism.
I’m also no longer with Vox Media and SB Nation, so I’ve taken some time to start looking for my next job.
Now I’m back to writing.
Here’s Basketball.
The WNBA announced that it’s going to hold a 2020 season at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. The questions are how safe the venue will be, and which players will be there.
A June 15 release gave the bare-bones answers to how, structurally, a basketball season will be played during a pandemic in a state that’s flaring up with record-high Covid-19 cases. The season will shrink from 36 to 22 games. Tip-off will be sometime in July, and the Finals will end sometime in October. The playoff format will stay the same with single-elimination games in the first two rounds followed by best-of-5 series. But there are a ton of questions left hanging, and not a lot of time to answer them.
Per the league, players will report to training camp at IMG Academy in early July before tip-off later in the month. The AP’s Doug Feinberg reported that commissioner Cathy Engelbert is hoping for a July 24 start date, six days before the NBA’s proposed tip-off. Of course, no fans will be in attendance. But still, how safe will any of this actually be?
For now, the testing protocol hasn’t been laid out publicly. Per ESPN’s Mechelle Voepel, “all who come on-site will be tested on arrival and throughout the season.” That’s all we know, though Voepel also noted that the WNBPA’s executive committee has met with NBA and WNBA medical personnel to learn more about testing.
It’s tough to dissect what little information we have, but regardless of what the players and league decide, there will be some risk. No league can ensure 100 percent safety. NBA commissioner Adam Silver spoke about his league’s quarantine “bubble” being a misnomer for what in reality will be NBA personnel remaining in one contained space while the many people who make the league work behind the scenes (hospitality employees, etc.) enter and leave the bubble. Will the W work the same?
What players and teams are trying to find out now is who will actually be reporting to training camp and playing in this 2020 mini-season. Voepel reported that there is a provision for players who are medically certified as high-risk if they were to contract virus, to sit the season and earn their full paycheck. Players who aren’t high-risk can also opt-out of playing this season without additional penalty, though they won’t continue to receive pay. The deadline for that decision is coming up quickly, on June 25, despite so many details of the league’s proposed plan up in the air.
From a few conversations I’ve had, a lot of star and high-impact players around the league are considering sitting this season out — especially veterans. Health and safety is a top concern. So far, publicly, Connecticut Sun head coach Curt Miller said he anticipates most, if not all of his team to opt in, per Howard Megdal.
The players’ decisions won’t come easy at all. This is supposed to be the WNBA’s big year, with a newly signed collective bargaining agreement paying top players nearly double what they earned last year. An investment was finally made. And momentum carried when the W had its most exciting, high-stakes offseason ever. But June 2020 looks a lot different from January, when the agreement was made.
The next two weeks will be hectic, but what’s clear is the power of the WNBA’s union is strong. Bleacher Report’s Ari Chambers reported a week ago that players were only guaranteed 60 percent of their salary in the proposed 22-game season. That’s now been bumped up to 100 percent. The league will also, according to Voepel, house players in multi-room villas with kitchens, and hotel rooms. Players with children will be allowed to bring a caretaker. And at the start of the season, players with five years’ experience can bring in a plus-one if the player is willing to pay for that person’s lodging, testing and meals, which, according to Chambers, wasn’t always the case. All players can bring a plus-one once they reach the semifinals.
The next week-plus could provide clarity to convince players on the fence to make the trip to IMG Academy. But there are a lot of question marks. Even if the WNBA plays, the league could be missing a lot of big-name players.
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Welcome back! And best of luck on the search.
Is there an expectation that if player X sits out, her team may add player Y? So that some of the cut /restricted list draftees or FAs might wind up on the roster afterall?