Golden State has ambitious plan to allow fans back
The National Basketball Association managed to conclude the 2019-20 season and hand out their Larry O’Brien Trophy, however they did so in the most unusual of circumstances. Players and teams were isolated in a resort in Florida and were not allowed to leave to see their families or friends. Fans were also not permitted inside to watch any of the action, costing the league and its teams hundreds of millions in lost revenue.
The league does have a plan to return to action for the new campaign on December 22nd, with both players and owners agreeing to the new start date. Teams will be playing in their own arenas and will travel to road games like normal, but it remains unlikely that fans will be allowed to attend. Each state has their own laws and the approach to the pandemic has been vastly different around the country.
The Golden State Warriors have revealed their ambitious plans to allow fans back into the Chase Center at a reduced capacity of 50%. This will still see thousands of fans inside the arena to watch their favourite basketball team in action. According to team owner Joe Lacob, he believes the Warriors can set an example for the rest of sports and live events to follow going forward.
The team is prepared to spend over $30 million in COVID-19 tests for fans, employees and staff for each day they enter the facility.
“I not only want to get this done and show the world how we can do it now, I’m willing to spend the money to do it,” said Lacob, via ESPN. “This is a serious, serious problem. It cannot go on for multiple years … because if this were to go on for several years, the NBA is no more.
“You cannot sustain this league with no fans. You can do it for a year. We’ll all get by for a year. But suppose we’re in this situation next year. Now we’re talking some serious, serious financial damage to a lot of people.”
Lacob is quite knowledgeable in the subject at hand considering he has a master’s degree in public health and made his money as a venture capitalist in a biotechnology company.
While teams still have a substantial revenue source coming in from various broadcast deals, they are really struggling without ticket or gameday revenue.
Lacob’s plan would see the Warriors using the rapid PCR tests which can detect traces of COVID-19 through a nasal or throat swap within 15 minutes. This test is more accurate than the rapid antigen tests but not as accurate as the PCR tests that the league used inside the NBA bubble in Orlando.
“Let us prove the concept. Let us use our money, our resources, our 7-8 months of work, our expertise to prove the concept,” Lacob said, via ESPN. “That’s what I’m trying to get the state, the city and the government to entertain.
“This (rapid-PCR) test is orders of magnitude more accurate than the (rapid antigen) test at the [White House] Rose Garden event. This is the best you can do. A lot of people don’t even know these tests exist yet, and they are ramping them up.
“By springtime, the rapid PCR tests will be manufactured in amounts nearing 100,000 per day by some of these companies. But I’m trying to show the world, trying to show the sports world in particular, and California, a way to do this. A safe way to have people come to an event and be totally safe walking in that building. The numbers bear it out.”
It remains to be seen whether the plan will be approved, but it is certainly refreshing to see teams and owners looking at different ways to try keep fans safe but still allowing them the opportunity to watch live sports again.
