How will NBA players deal with the physical toll of returning to the court?

A foul is called against Utah Jazz forward Royce O’Neale (23) as he and Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell (45) guard Toronto Raptors forward Pascal Siakam (43) during an NBA game at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City on Monday, March 9, 2020. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News

Editor’s note: First of a two-part series looking at the physical and mental toll of the abrupt stop to the NBA season, and what is needed for a return to play.

SALT LAKE CITY — Restarting the NBA season is going to involve a multitude of moving parts and steps. Can the playoffs be salvaged? Would games be played at a neutral and safe location? Will fans be in attendance?

Those are all great questions that have dominated the narrative surrounding the NBA since the coronavirus pandemic led to a suspended season, and those questions will need to be answered. But, before teams can even begin to consider getting back on the court, the physical ramifications of an abrupt and prolonged stop to the season will have to be addressed.

“The biggest issue is once we get the all-clear that we can be in small groups again is how long are they going to go from being at home to playing pretty competitive basketball?” — Dr. Brian Schulz

Dr. Brian Schulz, a sports medicine specialist and orthopedic surgeon at Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles, who has worked with multiple teams in professional sports and is the team physician for the Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Angels, said the biggest concern, from a physical standpoint, that NBA teams will have to contend with, is how quickly they expect players to be ready to play.

“The biggest issue is once we get the all-clear that we can be in small groups again is how long are they going to go from being at home to playing pretty competitive basketball?” Schulz said.

Going from any level of inactivity to any type of extraneous activity poses a huge risk for injury.

“We’ve seen it before from players who maybe hold out or don’t take part in preseason workouts and then they go right in and they pull something or have some sort of injury because it’s just impossible for them to mimic an NBA game in their weight room.”

Additionally, this all has to be considered in the context of the current situation. Risk of injury to players that will be coming out of self-quarantined situations could be increased because this is not like a normal offseason.

Nothing about this is normal and there is so much unknown that NBA trainers are having trouble wrapping their heads around keeping players prepared and ready without contact and without them having access to NBA facilities.

“We’ve never seen anything like this,” one NBA athletic trainer said. “We’ve had so many conversations and we’re trying to pool information from other trainers and as many people as possible. There’s nothing to compare it to. During lockouts in the past at least guys could get together and go to a gym, and there’s not even a gym they can go to.”

Across the board, team physicians, trainers and conditioning coaches agree there will need to be a ramp-up period before the season can begin, which means an even longer wait for basketball to return to our lives. And, because this isn’t like a normal offseason, that ramp-up period could need to be extended because people will be coming out of isolation.

The normal NBA preseason, including training camp, runs for roughly four weeks and players usually have been working with trainers and other players in order to get close to game-shape before training camp opens. Of course, that’s all in preparation for a normal NBA season. If the NBA is able to salvage any part of the 2019-20 season or the playoffs, it adds a new wrinkle.

“If you are entering at the end of a season, where the games essentially mean more and there’s more on the line, then you’re going from doing nothing to potentially doing a lot in a very competitive environment, very quickly,” Schulz said. “That would be a big concern.”

Another NBA team trainer pointed out that the only players that will be truly ready for a “normal” preseason or training camp are a very select few of the league’s elite and most wealthy players.

“The only people that are really OK are max players that have basketball courts at their houses,” he said. “And those are the people that have been with a team long enough to build a house and establish themselves and have a court put in.”

At the very least, the players who have a court to practice on will be able to mimic movement required by the game.

For many players though, they are having to get creative with their workouts and utilize the space that they have in their homes or apartments.

Many NBA teams have been trying to create some sense of normalcy with virtual workout sessions. Some Utah Jazz players, including Georges Niang, Royce O’Neale, and Tony Bradley, have posted screenshots on social media of their virtual workouts.

There we go!! #Quarantinesummerbodyelite pic.twitter.com/rxYXGvcBC9

— Georges Niang (@GeorgesNiang20) March 30, 2020

While any type of normalcy or routine for these players is good, it’s not just their exercise regimen that has been disrupted by the league shutdown.

NBA players are used to having a completely predetermined schedule that dictates where they travel, how long they train, when they sleep, when they eat, what they eat, when they receive treatment and when they play. That consistent routine, which includes nutrition, conditioning and everything in between, is now completely different and unpredictable.

One NBA trainer, in an attempt to explain what kinds of challenges this stoppage presents, likened the situation to when a player gets married during the offseason. In that case the whole routine is thrown off track and the trainer doesn’t have the same type of contact with the player as they normally would. There’s no way to regulate what they’re eating or drinking, if they’re working out on their honeymoon and what kind of shape they’ll be in when they return.

“There’s just so much that can go wrong without contact and with inactivity,” he said.

Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Utah Jazz forward Georges Niang (31) tries to defend Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) as the Jazz and Celtics play an NBA basketball game at Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020.

In order to ensure the safety and health of the players when basketball returns, an appropriate amount of time will have to be allotted for players to return to a normal routine and get back into game shape. Even then, there will be concerns.

Because we don’t know when the NBA will be able to restart, there’s no timetable on what the 2020-21 season will look like. The NBA is already looking at possibilities of play resuming in August or later, and while the silver lining of incredibly rested, healthy players does offer some hope, if play continues throughout the year, risk of injury could increase even more.

“Maybe players are not at risk of injury for the rest of this season, but especially for players who go far in the playoffs, you’ve played the last eighth of a season, or the playoffs and then you have one month or less to rest your body and prepare it like you normally would for the next season,” Schulz said. “That’s probably what the major leagues are dealing with. How can we do this, how can we play the next season and protect our players from having injuries that they may not have had in the past if it weren’t for this situation?”

The road to the sports world and NBA returning to normal is going to be a long one, we knew that already. But the road will need to be even longer than anticipated in order to prioritize the health and safety of the players.

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