“So Frustrating and Overwhelming”: San Antonio Spurs Star Hits Out at NBA For ‘ridiculous’ Safety Guidlines

COVID-19 is still affecting thousands across the globe, but the NBA is proceeding with a return. To keep their players safe, the league has been implementing many safety measures for their Orlando bubble. But some players, like San Antonio Spurs star DeMar DeRozan, are baffled by the extensive rules laid down by the NBA.

The league announced a 113-page health and safety handbook for all the people in the bubble. It even included a rule which prohibited players from engaging in games with partners, such as ping-pong. While speaking to ESPN, DeMar said, “The ping-pong thing is ridiculous, to be honest. Guys can’t do this, but we can do this and battle over each other? That part just makes no sense to me.

“I got through 10 lines of the handbook and just put it down because it became so frustrating and overwhelming at times because you just never thought you’d be in a situation of something like this. So it’s hard to process.”

San Antonio Spurs star DeRozan is not the only one unhappy

Bradley Beal spoke to ESPN about how it will be tough for the players to adhere to the strict set of rules. “Listen, it’s not a walk in the park,” Beal said. “That is where a lot of guys are concerned about. We can’t just leave. Can’t just do activities in which we want to do. We can’t go to our teammate’s room. Like there is a lot of s**t that we can’t do. So it’s tough. I get from a mental awareness standpoint that you are so used to doing this on the road, now you are constrained and restricted.”

DeRozan also spoke about the mental health aspect. “You’re taking guys that have been with their families every single day for the last few months and all of sudden, separating everybody into this one confined space and taking away a lot of joyful things we do outside of basketball. … It’ll be something for every single player when it comes to mental health.”

Without LaMarcus Aldridge, the Spurs will be heavily relying on DeRozan to carry them into the playoffs. But looking at their situation, it looks like they will miss out on the playoffs. They are four games behind the current eighth seed in Memphis and have some tough games in store. Will this be the year that the Spurs’ 22-year record of consecutive playoff appearances is broken? We’ll find out soon.