The NBA is finally back.
More than four months after the NBA suspended its season due to the coronavirus pandemic, the league on Thursday night will host a couple of real games, which really count in the rankings, within its bubble at Walt Disney World near Orlando, Florida. On the occasion, the league made sure to include a group of headliners in its grand reopening.
What you need to know
Who is playing?
After the Utah Jazz and New Orleans Pelicans christen the festivities at 6:30 pm EST, they will clear the stage so that the two Los Angeles heavyweights, the Clippers and the Lakers, can meet again. at 9 pm ET be a preview of the Western Conference finals.
How to look
The double header will be broadcast on TNT.
What are we watching
Twenty-two teams are participating in the league restart, and each will play eight qualifying games before the playoffs begin on August 17. Players have spent the past few weeks removing rust in accelerated training camps, and the teams played in a series of television games. Some seemed more prepared than others.
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But Thursday’s games are the culmination of a huge play by the league, which desperately hopes to end the season without a problem. (Looking at you, Major League Baseball.) Until now, the highly restrictive NBA campus has remained secure. On Tuesday, the league reported that none of the 344 players in the bubble had tested positive for the coronavirus since the results were last announced on July 20. Officials want to keep it that way.
Players to watch
LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. And Zion Williamson, maybe?
Lakers vs. Clippers
With all due respect to the Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo, who will make his long-awaited return for Milwaukee in a game against the Boston Celtics on Friday night, LeBron James remains the most captivating presence in the league. At 35, James caused the Lakers to skyrocket when the season was cut short in March. But he clearly stayed in shape during the long break, and he sees another clear shot at a fourth championship, regardless of all the talk of adding an asterisk to this year’s title due to the shortened and unusual season.
Of course, none of this would be possible for the Lakers without forward Anthony Davis, who was averaging 26.7 points and 9.4 rebounds per game when the season was suspended. Davis received a puncture in the eye a few days ago and missed the final blow to the Lakers. But he says he plans to play the Clippers.
The Clippers have their own big ambitions: to win their first championship. A season eliminated from his title career with the Toronto Raptors, Kawhi Leonard has paired with Paul George to form one of the most fearsome duos in the league, and the Clippers are ridiculously deep, or at least should be on time. to the playoffs.
Jazz against pelicans
And then there is Zion Williamson, the Pelicans’ first-year forward. You remember him, right? Steam log body? Spring hops? He left the bubble for what the team described as an urgent family matter, but has since returned. Coach Alvin Gentry told reporters that Williamson participated in the Pelicans’ practice Wednesday, but that his status for Thursday’s game against the Jazz would be a “game time decision.”
As for the Jazz, they played an involuntary and unfortunate role in closing the league on March 11. It was the positive test from center Rudy Gobert before a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder that made it all fall apart. Gobert had been casual about the dangers of the virus in the days leading up to his positive test, and ended up causing friction with point guard Donovan Mitchell, who also tested positive. Gobert, one of the league’s best defensive players, has repeatedly apologized for his actions.
Who is missing?
Several players across the league chose not to restart, citing family concerns or injury issues. The Lakers are dealing with the absence of Avery Bradley, who decided not to participate. Before the season was suspended, Bradley had been the team’s best perimeter defender.
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Frequent questions
Updated July 27, 2020
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Should I refinance my mortgage?
- It could be a good idea, because mortgage rates have never been lower. Refinancing applications have taken mortgage applications to some of the highest levels since 2008, so be ready to get online. But the defaults have increased, too, so if you’re thinking about buying a home, be aware that some lenders have tightened their standards.
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What will school be like in September?
- Many schools are unlikely to return to normal hours this fall, requiring the routine of online learning, impromptu child care, and delayed work days to continue. California’s two largest public school districts, Los Angeles and San Diego, said July 13 that instruction will be remote only in the fall, citing concerns that rising coronavirus infections in their areas pose too serious a risk to students and teachers. Together, the two districts enroll about 825,000 students. They are the largest in the country so far to abandon plans for a partial physical return to classrooms when they reopen in August. For other districts, the solution will not be an all-or-nothing approach. Many systems, including the country’s largest New York City, are developing hybrid plans that involve spending a few days in classrooms and other days online. There is no national policy on this yet, so check with your municipal school system regularly to see what’s going on in your community.
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Is the coronavirus in the air?
- Coronavirus can remain in the air for hours in tiny droplets in stagnant air, infecting people as they inhale, growing scientific evidence suggests. This risk is highest in crowded interior spaces with poor ventilation, and may help explain overcast events reported in meat packing plants, churches, and restaurants. It is unclear how often the virus is transmitted through these small droplets or sprays, compared to the larger droplets that are expelled when a sick person coughs or sneezes, or is transmitted through contact with contaminated surfaces, Linsey said. Marr, Virginia Tech aerosol expert. Aerosols are released even when a symptom-free person exhales, speaks or sings, according to Dr. Marr and more than 200 other experts, who have summarized the evidence in an open letter to the World Organization. Of the health.
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What are the symptoms of coronavirus?
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Does Covid-19 transmit asymptomatic?
- So far, the evidence seems to show that it does. A widely cited article published in April suggests that people are most infectious approximately two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms, and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were the result of transmission from people who still had no symptoms. Recently, a senior expert from the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people without symptoms was “very rare,” but later withdrew that claim.
The Lakers also don’t have point guard Rajon Rondo, who broke his right thumb in the bubble and is expected to be out for several weeks. The Lakers have tried to shore up their backcourt by signing JR Smith, and he played well on his final shot, scoring 20 points on 6-of-9 shooting in 25 minutes from the bench.
The Clippers are missing a bunch of pieces. Lou Williams, one of the league’s best reserves, will not play Thursday because he is trapped in his hotel room, serving a 10-day quarantine for breaking league protocol during an excused absence from the bubble. While at his Atlanta home for a funeral, Williams stopped by a strip club.
Also, the Clippers’ Montrezl Harrell will miss the game after coming out of the bubble, and coach Doc Rivers rated Patrick Beverley as a “maybe” after he recently returned.
