By Jake Holley
America as we knew it changed on March 11, 2020, and I witnessed it from a dorm building at Oklahoma State University.
It was only recently that I learned of more bad news – the death of Kobe Bryant – in that same place. This time, the entire country was put on notice.
Rudy Gobert, the starting center for the Utah Jazz, had tested positive for COVID-19, becoming the first NBA player to do so. Not only that, he was filmed rubbing his hands and arms on a microphone and desk as a jab at the COVID-19 panic sweeping the country at a press conference shortly before testing positive. Now, it had become much more serious.
I had seen the news on Twitter, but it hadn’t sunk in yet. I got a knock on my dorm room door. I opened it, and one of my friends from a few doors down was staring at me with his jaw on the floor.
“Did you hear they shut down the NBA?” He said.
I followed him into a small common area on our floor where more than ten other people – sports fans and non-sports fans alike – had gathered around the television as if we were watching devastating news break in real time… It turns out, we were, and it started right here in Oklahoma.
The Utah Jazz were playing the Oklahoma City Thunder that day in OKC. The public address announcer at the game hopped on the microphone as soon as he found out.
“The game tonight has been postponed,” He said. “You are all safe, and take your time in leaving the arena tonight, and do so in an orderly fashion. Thank you for coming out tonight. We are all safe, and you can visit okcthunder.com for updates on upcoming games. Please drive home safely, and goodnight fans.”
Boos erupted from the stands, but fans eventually filed out.
Then, minutes later, the unthinkable happened – The NBA announced it would suspend the rest of the season indefinitely. Basketball was over.
Scott Van Pelt called it, “…(An) astounding and unprecedented story,” on ESPN. NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski joined him for an interview, in which he divulged new information about the situation, including that the Oklahoma City Thunder and Utah Jazz teams were both quarantined in Chesapeake Energy Arena.
We couldn’t believe our eyes and ears back at the dorms. Will other sports follow? How long will this last?
The next day, FIBA canceled its upcoming games. The SEC, Big East, ACC and AAC canceled the remainder of its men’s basketball tournaments. The Pac-12 canceled all its sports competitions until further notice. U.S. Soccer canceled its upcoming men’s and women’s matches for the months of March and April. The MLB canceled spring training games, and Minor League Baseball postponed the start of its season indefinitely. The NCAA canceled all its remaining winter and spring championships. Formula 1 canceled the Australian Grand Prix. The XFL canceled its regular season games. The PGA Tour canceled the remainder of The Players Championship. Locally, Cashion’s boys’ basketball team was set to compete for the 2A State Championship. Not anymore.
The sports world was turned upside down in 24 hours. It seemed like the intention was to nip COVID-19 spread in the bud. It’s been an entire year, and we are finally starting to get some relief. Vaccine rollout is happening across America, with millions having already taken at least one dose.
The sports world evolved, and so did the rest of the world. Leagues began regularly testing athletes before games and playing games in empty stadiums became the “new normal.” Limited capacity events eventually were deemed to be somewhat safe, but playing games in a full stadium was a thing of the past.
My hope was that the ordeal would only last a few weeks. Many others felt the same optimism. Now, returning to full-capacity games this fall is considered an optimistic prediction.
As America works on moving away from the “new normal,” let’s hope sports can get back to the old normal, too.