Bubble Mentality: What Colleges Can Learn From the NBA Bubble
Lakers’ Championship (Source: SB Nation)
When the NBA suspended play on March 11th, the rest of the NBA season, including the Playoffs, teetered in the balance. Pessimism plagued the NBA for the immediate period following the country’s shutdown, but the idea of the NBA season returning slowly gained viability as states reopened their economies. Soon, NBA executives, owners, commentators, and fans began to float ideas. Jay Williams, a former NBA player and ESPN commentator, suggested that the NBA complete the rest of the season on isolated cruise ships. The NBA had another solution in mind which the team governors (or owners) approved on June 4th with a tentative restart date of July 30th.
The NBA leveraged its relationship with Disney, which owns ESPN and ABC, two of the primary broadcasters of NBA games, to create a “Bubble” at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida consisting of the teams with the top 22 records. The NBA and Disney designed the Bubble to be completely isolated from the outside world. All players stayed in Disney-owned hotels on property, teams conducted practices at the seven temporarily constructed practice facilities on site, and teams played their games at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports. Bubble denizens received daily COVID-19 testing, and remarkably, zero positive tests occurred over nearly three months that players spent in the Bubble. Disney and the NBA seemed to have thought of everything, including flying in players’ favorite barbers to create an on-site barbershop. Against all odds, the NBA not only created a safe environment, but one conducive to a high level of basketball. In other words, the NBA pioneered a blueprint for how to manage COVID-19–a blueprint from which lessons can be learned and applied to college environments.
Lesson One: Create Stringent Guidelines and Stick to Them
Like college students, NBA players are used to getting their way. To counteract possible transgressions on the part of the players, the NBA created a comprehensive set of COVID-19 rules. Though the NBA highly discouraged players from leaving the Bubble, players could leave the Bubble for emergencies or personal reasons. However, once players left the Bubble, they would have to follow strict protocols upon their return, including stringent COVID-19 testing and mandatory quarantine. When Clippers star Lou Williams made an illicit trip to a Atlanta gentlemen’s club, the NBA held steady with their quarantine protocols, even though Lou Williams’ absence arguably cost the Clippers a few losses. Even in the aftermath of the Lou Williams incident, both current and former players stood behind the NBA’s protocols. While the NBA’s Bubble rules were stringent, players viewed the rules as fair because the NBA applied their protocols uniformly and unwaveringly, and players understood what the NBA expected of them.
Pricing for coffees at Jimmy Butler’s company (Source: Republic World)
Lesson Two: Leaders Must Take Charge
Though Disney and the NBA certainly played an instrumental role in the Bubble’s success, much of the Bubble’s success can be attributed to player leadership. A select few players, such as Lebron James, Anthony Davis, and Jimmy Butler, command universal respect from their peers. These players helped set the tone in the Bubble. James, for example, rallied his L.A. Lakers behind him with his focus on winning, stating, “I’m here for one goal and one goal only. That’s to win an NBA Championship.” Despite players’ complaints about their hotel accommodations, James’ teammate, Anthony Davis, brought positivity in the Bubble:, “I know the NBA is trying to make this as comfortable and relaxing as possible for us. I think what they’re doing is great[.]” Heat player Jimmy Butler used his intensity on the court to win games and his intensity off the court to start his own coffee business. These players used their position of respect to inspire a sense of purpose in other players and set a positive example of how players could make the best use of their time in the Bubble.
Paul George Fishing in the Bubble (Source: The Wall Street Journal)
Lesson Three: Distractions Are Key
The NBA understood that players would distract themselves easily in the Bubble if players had nothing to do other than play basketball and twiddle their thumbs in their rooms. Thus, the NBA provided distractions for the players, such as video game rooms and access to golf courses. But a new passion for angling emerged when the NBA stocked Disney World’s lakes with fish, which gave players relief from the daily grind of basketball. Additionally, the amenities improved players’ mental health. Clippers player Paul George has cited fishing as being therapeutic for him in the past. George was one of numerous players who dealt with depression in the Bubble but found relief by fishing in Disney’s stocked lakes. By providing amenities for players, the NBA created a way for players to blow off steam and to safely interact with one another in outdoor environments.
Though few schools have the NBA’s 180 million dollar budget to create a bubble, they should look to the NBA for guidance and keep these three lessons in mind as they make decisions about whether or not to bring students back in the spring.