The National Basketball Coaches Association "fears new league standards and guidelines that could bar team staffers in high-risk categories for the coronavirus from attending the NBA season's restart" in Orlando "could 'severely jeopardize' their future employment opportunities," according to Lowe & Wojnarowski of ESPN.com. NBCA Exec Dir Dave Fogel and President Rick Carlisle have "concerns that several assistants" and three head coaches -- the Rockets' Mike D'Antoni (69), Pelicans' Alvin Gentry (65) and Spurs' Gregg Popovich (71) -- could be "restricted from leading their teams and some could face considerable challenges in resuming their careers." Warren LeGarie, the agent for D'Antoni and Gentry, yesterday said, "I hope there is a basketball solution to this issue rather than a legal one" (ESPN.com, 6/17).
SPEAKING OUT: YAHOO SPORTS' Ben Rohrbach questioned the criticism of Nets G and NBPA VP Kyrie Irving for speaking out: "If Irving is being ostracized for daring to question the NBA's return during a pandemic and worldwide social unrest -- the likes of which people have not experienced in generations -- how much does that serve to suppress the voices of lower-profile players who might be hesitant to return?" This increasingly "feels like it is not a matter of if the NBA can pull this off without incident, but just how significant that incident will be" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 6/17). In DC, Jerry Brewer writes some of the messengers are "polarizing," particularly Irving and Lakers C Dwight Howard, but the message is "worthy of deeper consideration." It is "reasonable to hold the league accountable," but it also is "vital that the players contribute more than just pressure." The NBA "needs their ideas, too." The door "seems open for a higher level of participation in formulating this plan," and more players "had better participate" (WASHINGTON POST, 6/18).
