Dr. Anthony Fauci has become the voice of reason from Washington when it comes to the coronavirus pandemic. He trusted by everyone... unless you live in one of those “mask shaming” regions where everyone is shocked there’s a sudden spike in new cases.
Fauci praised the NBA’s 22-team restart plan in Orlando calling it “quite creative” and a possible blueprint for other sports, speaking to Michael Kim of Stadium.
Dr. Anthony Fauci told @Stadium he is supportive of the NBA’s restart plan: “It’s quite creative.. I think they might very well be quite successful with it... They really wanted to make sure that the safety of the players was paramount.” pic.twitter.com/qwo5bCDrVt
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 13, 2020
“I think they might very well be quite successful with it. They really wanted to make sure that the safety of the players was paramount...
“I actually have looked at that plan... What they are really trying to do is to create a situation where it is as safe as it possibly could be for the players by creating this bubble. Essentially testing everybody, make sure that you start with a baseline of everybody being negative and trying to make sure that there is no influx into that cohort of individuals and do a tournament-type play...
“I was very pleased to see that the intent was not reckless at all. They really wanted to make sure that the safety of the players and the people associated with the players was paramount.”
Fauci may think it’s a good restart plan, but the players have not yet seen all the details and that has made some uncomfortable with it. Mixed in with those health worries are serious concerns over the impact of a return to play on the Black Lives Matters and social justice movements. Plus, some players want more free movement and don’t like the restrictions put on them in Orlando (that last concern will not play well with the general public).
The NBA worked with epidemiologists and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to come up with this plan. It’s not perfect, but it’s about as good as the league could come up with balancing safety concerns and the desire to make a lot of money.
No matter how good a plan the NBA may or may not have, no matter how much Fauci loves the NBA plan, there is one issue that is a rising problem for the league (and all of Florida) — a spike in cases.
NEW: Florida’s Department of Health on Saturday morning reported a new daily record high of 2,581 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 — surpassing the previous high by 679. The previous high was hit on Friday. And the high before that was hit on Thursday.
— Miami Herald (@MiamiHerald) June 13, 2020
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