Where do sports go from here?

By Dorian Alerte | Published by April 22, 2020

Spring 2020 was shaping up to be one of the greatest years in athletics until the sports world was hit by the COVID-19 outbreak.

The NBA was preparing to go into the playoffs, fans were looking forward to the college basketball March Madness tournament, and college athletes all over the country were preparing for their respective tournaments and playoffs, as well as the arrival of spring sports. Even the much anticipated NFL draft was going to be bigger and better this year.

Then everything changed.

After it was revealed that Utah Jazz star Rudy Gobert had tested positive for the illness on March 11, it did not take long for the NBA to take initiative and suspend their season, followed by sports leagues all over the globe. 

College athletes have seen their seasons totally cancelled because of the pandemic. This includes the seasons of rising tennis player for the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University Aggies, Nolan Martino and Kean University’s softball pitcher Amanda Ross.

“We originally got an email during practice that the season was being suspended,” Martino said. “It wasn’t until we started seeing that we were being sent home, that we realized that our season was totally over.”

Ross shares a similar story of how Kean Softball’s season came to an end..

“The toughest thing was how abrupt it ended,” she said. “We were preparing for our Florida trip when we were notified it was cancelled. We were obviously upset but we knew it was done for our safety.”

 Martino and Ross are just two of thousands of athletes that have seen their seasons come to a complete halt. Their disappointment has been felt, with many of them taking to social media expressing their disappointment that they will not be able to play again this spring. 

“This whole situation, it’s obviously a bummer because we didn’t even get an opportunity to get where we want to be,” Martino said. “But we’re here now, and we’re gonna get ready for next year.”

Along with the athletes, perhaps the most affected are the arena workers, especially for professional sports, that work for hourly pay. Many of these people rely on this sort of income to be able to provide and support their families. 

According to Jabari Young, sports business reporter for CNBC Sports, this group will be most affected by this pandemic as opposed to the professional leagues as he stated on the Dan Le Batard Show.

“It’s gonna be felt across the board,” he said. “It’s gonna be felt in those smaller areas- the working class, those people that rely on these jobs everyday. Obviously without those games, you don’t have any events, without the events, people can’t work, and then corporations lose money, people lose money across the board but it’s the little class, the middle class, the lower class people that people just cannot forget about, in these times especially. The big leagues are gonna be fine, they’ll make their millions of dollars back, they’ll be fine, maybe we go through a little bit of a check and balance, a reset in sports a little bit, but the big corporations will be fine, it’s the little people that matter.”

A variety of NBA players and executives have taken notice of this issue and stepped up to help those that cannot work in the arenas while events are cancelled. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Cavaliers Power Forward Kevin Love, Pelicans Power Forward Zion Williamson, and other owners and players throughout several leagues have taken the initiative to help out the arena workers that will not be working throughout the duration of this pandemic.

These have been actions that have been noticed by others within the sports community including MJ Acosta, a reporter for the NFL Network.

“I think it will take longer economically especially for all the hourly venue employees who were counting on sports events to feed their families,” she told The Tower in a phone interview. “Pro athletes and some owners have stepped up to help these folks, and I hope it’s something every team can adapt.”

Despite all of the negativity surrounding the pandemic, there is hope among the sports community for what happens next.

“The Sports community is already counting the days until their teams are back in action,” Acosta said. “I think once it’s safe to be back out there, the fans, players and employees will be chomping at the bit to get back to their arenas and stadiums to share the love for their teams.”

Athletes and fans alike are attempting to find ways to fill the void that has been left by the hiatus that sports leagues have taken in order to combat this virus and protect the health and safety of the players, fans, and employees. These include the NFL and NBA offering complimentary League Pass in order to replay classic and recent games.

Even with free League Pass, sports fans are waiting patiently for their favorite teams to make it back. The belief within the community is the comeback for sports is going to be unlike anything seen before.

“I think the rebound is gonna be massive,” Martino said. “Sports are gonna have a crazy audience and appeal once they come back, especially for college students. We’ll be able to be back on campus and be able to support the teams we love.”

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