Days after receiving a warning for not covering his face in common areas of the NBA campus, downtown Los Angeles Lakers, Dwight Howard, continued to question the need for a mask within the league’s so-called “bubble” in Orlando. , Florida.
“They sanitize everything,” Howard said in an Instagram Live video he posted on Sunday. “We do tests every day. So, it’s not like we’re around someone who can give it to us because we all test together. And so, we’re only close to each other. We’re only close to everyone who’s in the bubble We don’t see any strangers We don’t have any contact with any strangers
“So, I just … I understand all the ‘wearing a mask’ and all that, so no one is not trying to do anything out of place. But, you know, once again, I understand that you always have to be someone kind of controversy somewhere. And I’m not in any controversy. You know what I mean? I get it. It’s a little clickbait. “
Howard’s faith in league operation has been justified, until now. The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association jointly announced Monday that of the 346 players evaluated in Orlando for COVID-19 since July 13, zero had confirmed positive results.
In the nearly hour-long video, Howard repeatedly brought up the subject of the masks, responding to comments that fans posted on his live stream.
“I have a mask,” said Howard, whose face was uncovered while broadcasting from a laundry. “I have additional skins here to make sure now. Look, now: skins on top of the skins. NBA skins.”
The eight-time All-Star held up a handful of masks to the camera.
“Who wants an NBA mask? We are about to sell them on eBay,” he said with a smile. “Well, not eBay … Amazon. Amazon NBA. Let’s sell them.”
“They tried to make a big deal out of what I said about wearing the mask,” he said at another time. “And I get it. Common sense, it’s not common. But I understand why certain people say certain things.”
Later in the video, he made clear how the virus spreads, which has caused more than 140,000 deaths in the United States.
“I didn’t know that the coronavirus was flying through the air looking for people,” said Howard. “Let me stop because I don’t want people to think this is not serious. It is very serious, all of you. But, these are jokes. And I suppose we should not joke. But with everything that happens, we need some positivity, man. We need some jokes. We need people to laugh and smile. “
At one point in the video, Howard left the laundry room to leave, where he spoke to several unidentified employees off camera. When a staff member misheard how much more time he had left his load of clothes before the wash cycle ended, he joked blaming his mask.
“You may need to have their ears checked,” Howard said, folding one of his ears between his fingers. “That mask. The little part of the mask, that makes your ear drop.”
When one of the employees invited Howard to join a poolside meeting, Howard changed the tone of his voice to an authoritative tone when he responded.
“We reached the social distance,” he said. “Make sure you are 6 feet [away]. Six feet now. Where’s your mask? Thank you. Thank you!”
Later, when a follower asked if players would be allowed to visit Disney’s theme parks, he again used the question as fodder for the mask material.
“I don’t know if we’re going to wear masks in games,” said Howard. “Let’s say, ‘Ahhhhh!’ The masks are going to fall off. “
Howard also answered a question about vaccines during the Instagram session.
“Do I believe in vaccines?” Howard said. “No, I don’t. That’s my personal opinion, but no, I don’t.”
Lakers coach Frank Vogel said Howard, who joined the team in Orlando, skipping the Lakers’ previous training camp in El Segundo, California, which featured individual trainings and information sessions on the coronavirus, was at So much of the same information as the rest of the Lakers. the team.
“He was part of those shows through Zoom,” Vogel said Monday. “And everyone has to make personal decisions with this. All over the world, everyone makes personal decisions. For us, we want to make sure we follow the NBA protocols that have been established for us to help us stay as safe as possible. There is no 100% risk free environment within the bubble, and we just want to be as diligent as we can by following those protocols. “
In accordance with NBA health and safety protocol, the league has the right to impose disciplinary measures, from a warning, to a fine, suspension or even removal from campus, if a player does not meet the guidelines for the restart of the season in Orlando
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