September is typically the quietest month in NBA life, but in 2020, September means an unprecedented playoff career. The NBA restart means that playoff basketball will begin in mid-August and a champion will be crowned in mid-October.
For Boston Celtics wing Gordon Hayward, this new schedule suddenly means a boy who was on the road during the offseason calm is about to be born in the middle of a championship run. His wife, Robyn, is pregnant with her fourth child. After having three girls, the Haywards are having a boy in September, and Gordon says he will be there for the birth of their son.
“It’s a pretty easy decision for me about that,” he said during a video conference with journalists on Friday. “I have been at the birth of each one of my children and I believe that there are more important things in life. So we will cross that bridge when we get there.
Under NBA protocol, a player who leaves the Orlando bubble for an excused, pre-arranged event like this would have to test negative for COVID-19 every day he left and then return for a four-day quarantine. You would also have to test negative each of the four days in quarantine when you return. Your final test would need to be through a nasopharyngeal swab, which is the deep swab that runs up a person’s nose to the back of their nasal cavity. Only when all those steps are passed can you return to action.
While this decision is easy for Hayward, the decision to go to Orlando has not been. He is preparing for what is, in essence, the longest road trip of his life while his pregnant wife cares for three girls.
“Although we are traveling a lot during the year, you have time to go home,” Hayward said. “Maybe a maximum of eight, nine, ten days on the road before you’re home. And therefore, leaving for much longer is certainly going to be difficult. It will be difficult. There is no doubt about it. I think leaving the girls will be very difficult and it will surely be a sad day for me. “
Hayward says the ability to video conference and talk to her family while in Orlando will certainly help make things easier. It will help everyone return to Indianapolis to be with the family, easing the burden on Hayward’s wife. It also helps that your daughters are old enough to have conversations about what is happening so they can be better prepared for what is around the corner.
“I think they are old enough to the point that they understand what is happening and we have tried to explain to them that I will be leaving for a while,” Hayward said. “I think the opportunity to compete for a championship and play for a title is something that a lot of NBA players want to do.” We want to go there and continue the season and try to finish something we’ve been working on throughout the year. “
This story has been updated with the details of the NBA protocol for the return of a player during a justified game.
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