NBA Updates 4: The Game
Adu Reghuram
The National Basketball Association includes an 82-game season with multiple daily games. Teams could play up to one game every two days, if not every day. Important events such as the NBA All-Star game also run according to a tight schedule. Even with all these obstacles and accommodations, the NBA doesn't disappoint. As I talked about last week, the NBA is evolving into something astonishing to watch. The rapid ball movement followed up with an extravagant bucket sounds like a boring concept, but it's much more than this. Teamwork, dedication, chemistry, back-court, front-court, and coaching styles are only some of the key factors to a basketball game.
Hello basketball fans, welcome to another weekly report where I go in-depth into the NBA regarding this week. We will get into Kyrie Irving's media situation, Rudy Gobert's health and safety protocols, the hectic work schedule, and the matchups of the week. Without further ado, let's dive in!
NBA Referees Prepare For 15-Game Slate Ahead Of Election Day 2022
Referees, like always, go through an incredibly difficult schedule. On top of this, the NBA decided to throw in a mind-boggling 15 games on the same night (November 7, 2022)! 15 games a night is the maximum possible which means the referees will be maxed out. With three officials in each arena, plus another 12-15 working in the replay center, as many as 60 referees will be on the clock that night. How does this affect capacity? “That will max out our capacity, utilizing every replay operator space that we have, with 15 people around the outer rim,” said Kane Fitzgerald, the former NBA ref who is working his first season off the floor as VP of Referee Operations. On a typical busy night consisting of 8-10 games, the starting times are broken up by time zones. The schedule for the 7th calls for a more orchestrated tip-off; one game begins every 15 minutes once Wizards-Hornets tips off. This schedule could be tighter than ever!
Brooklyn Nets Suspend Kyrie Irving At Least 5 Games
Kyrie Irving has most definitely gotten into huge trouble in the past. He struggled with depression and had to pay a huge amount of fines for his behavior. The Brooklyn Nets had suspended Irving for 5 games without pay recently. Irving was caught posting a link to an antisemitic work on his Twitter feed. Although Irving had apologized saying, “I have no antisemitic beliefs,” the Brooklyn Nets took no sympathetic actions toward his controversial decision. Kyrie Irving has proved his role and talent on the roster, unfortunately, his decisions off the court took control.
Rudy Gobert's Health and Safety Protocols
Rudy Gobert getting traded to the Timberwolves was a big deal. The combination of Karl Anthony-Towns and Gobert scared and exhilarated NBA fans. Along with this, they have talented guards such as Anthony Edwards and D'Angelo Russell. We were all excited to see what this talented team had to offer this year. Unfortunately, Gobert played against the Milwaukee Bucks while suffering from an illness. Minnesota Coach Chris Finch said he wasn't concerned about Gobert–whose positive test for the Coronavirus triggered a halting of the NBA season in 2020–playing through an illness and then showing up in the protocols. So far, Gobert has been averaging 12.6 points and leads the league with 13.9 rebounds per game.
Match-ups This Week To Look out for
Phoenix Suns v Minnesota Timberwolves - Nov 9
Philadelphia 76ers v Atlanta Hawks - Nov 10
Denver Nuggets v Boston Celtics - Nov 11
Cleveland Cavaliers v Golden State Warriors - Nov 11
Brooklyn Nets v Los Angeles Clippers - Nov 12
