Rockets GM Daryl Morey very confident in safety of NBA bubble

“The mood here is everyone knows it’s going to work, and we’re going to be back to basketball in not too long,” Morey told SportsTalk 790.

As of Monday, out of 322 players tested for COVID-19, the NBA had reported only two positive results at its “bubble” site near Orlando.

What’s most encouraging from the league’s perspective is that the two positives were caught prior to the end of the mandatory two-day period of self-quarantine upon arrival at the Disney complex. Thus, those players contracted the virus in their home markets, as opposed to at the site, and they were isolated before they could roam the halls.

The 22 teams involved in the restart have all been there between five and seven days, and to this point, all indications are that it remains free of the virus. In an interview Monday afternoon with Houston’s SportsTalk 790, Rockets GM Daryl Morey said he was very confident in the plan.

“The NBA and Disney have done an incredible job setting this up. It’s very, very protected,” Morey said. “We’re all still wearing our masks because that’s prudent, but at times you feel like, ‘Why am I wearing it?’ Because everyone is tested every day. But the NBA is being smart and saying, ‘Even though this is a very safe environment, let’s add another layer.’

Morey continued his comments:

I actually do think we’re in the best spot in the world right now to not get it. We’re very excited. The mood here is everyone knows it’s going to work, and we’re going to be back to basketball in not too long. … The protocols are extremely stringent. Much higher than the CDC [U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] and all the other bodies recommend. It’s really well done.

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The Rockets, of course, do still have their own medical concerns. Superstar guard Russell Westbrook announced Monday that he has yet to report because he tested positive for COVID-19, and James Harden and Luc Mbah a Moute also remain absent for undisclosed reasons. For the Rockets to go on the championship run that they crave, they need both members of their All-Star backcourt to be healthy and present.

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But for all who make it to Florida ⁠— and the expectations remains for Harden and Westbrook to both get there soon ⁠— Morey is confident that the NBA’s stringent safety protocols will allow for a successful conclusion to the 2019-20 regular season and a complete playoffs.

“I don’t want to get overconfident, but it’s really hard to envision how this isn’t going to work,” Morey said. “Literally, every single day we’re tested. Everyone is taking extra precautions everywhere. Obviously there’s always some chance. It seems like a lot of people want us to fail, for some reason. Maybe because that’s interesting to some? But it seems very hard to figure out how the plan that they put together isn’t going to work.”

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