It was an idea that was solidly
about steely determination tinged with a bit of desperation to get something
done before the year runs out. Following the March 11 suspension of the 2019-20
NBA season, the league was single-mindedly looking for a way to get games
restarted in mid-year or so in order to get a championship series going before
2020 ends. The result was the “NBA Bubble” isolation zone in Walt Disney World where
teams, coaches and staff could practice and later compete while screened from
possible COVID-19 infection. July 30 was pegged as the restart date, and from
the look of things they have begun things rather nicely.
ESPN.com tells us that the NBA had quite the successful restart of
the tragically truncated current season within the Walt Disney World bubble on
Thursday, July 30. Two games were played with which to determine which of the
participating teams would get to fill out the seeding of competitors for the
playoffs, only partly filled before the COVID-related suspension months ago.
First to go at it in this restart date were the Utah Jazz and New Orleans
Pelicans, with the second being contested between the LA teams, Clippers versus
Lakers.
For the NBA Bubble Season game 1,
New Orleans surprised with a solid start that kept their squad leading more
often than not. This was thanks to the efforts of Brandon Ingram and Zion
Williamson, though neither player would finish the game on the hard court, where
Rudy Gobert turned things around for the Jazz and enable them to beat the
Pelicans 106-104 down the wire. Among their top scorers in the return were
Williamson (13) and Ingram (23), the latter being described by New Orleans
coach Alvin Gentry as making plenty of big shots, only for the team to let
their golden opportunity pass.
The follow-up game made a
prominent showing of just how much the COVID-19 suspension and lack of
opportunities to practice or play have had on the NBA teams. The Lakers led by
LeBron James came across as having been clearly out of the loop, with the
opposing Clippers fighting them for the lead in what Anthony Davis described as
a real game, with “two teams battling.” Davis scored 32 points, James and Kyle
Kuzma both 16. The Clippers gave just as good with Kawhi Leonard (28) and Paul
George (30). Lead runs went 26-5 for the Clippers in Q3, which the Lakers
reversed with 36-14.
In the end the Lakers got their
team engine to full steam just in time to wrap the game 103 against the
Clippers’ 101, though the former did make note that in the later second quarter
and the early third they were struggling to score. The Clippers hoped to take
advantage with a 66-55 rally, only for LeBron to counter-rally with his team to
victory. Leonard would have every right to be disappointed only that he was
just too happy to be playing again after COVID-19 sidelined everyone for
months.
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