While a guest on a Caron Butler’s “The Tuff Juice Podcast”, the Washington Wizards’ John Wall acknowledged he wouldn’t want to play in NBA bubble.
“For me, if I was playing, I wouldn’t want to go to it, to be honest,” Wall said. “I just don’t feel like it’s safe. I just don’t feel like it is. I understand why they want to do it and what they’re trying to get to, but I wouldn’t want to.”
Wall, who’s rehabbing a ruptured Achilles, added that he wouldn’t go to Disney even if he was fully healthy.
“If I was healthy enough to play, I wouldn’t want to go play,” Wall said. “What am I going, just to play eight games? I’m not going for just eight games and then coming back home.”
Wall isn’t the only NBA player with concerns about resuming the season. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to hamstring our nation. Players are also questioning if they should play amid ongoing protests for social justice reform.
Kyrie Irving and Dwight Howard have expressed their concerns over playing games now and not having it distract from the current situation.
It’s a sentiment, Wall agrees with.
“Kyrie has his things where he be in his own world… ‘The Earth is flat,'” Wall said. “But to be honest, I think he has a point. A lot of people feel that way. I think that’s why they tried to get on that call to see how many people really want to go play and how many people don’t want to play. Because with all this ‘Black Lives Matter’ going on and protesting and trying to get justice and all that; a lot of people feel like it’s not safe to go there. That’s what he stands on.”
Damian Lillard acknowledged he does not feel 100 percent comfortable about returning to play but says it’s a risk he’s willing to take.
Lillard pointed to the financial and social impact that players can have if they return to play.
“I can only speak for myself—but I think it goes for other guys as well—we are the financial support for our families and for a lot of our community,” Lillard said. “But I think a lot of guys in the league have a point. I think Kyrie and Dwight have a point. So I understand it all.”
This has become the league’s top off-court storyline. Various players are speaking up and providing different perspectives. Wall is another voice added to the growing list of names with reservations about playing.
