The brazen hope to return to whatever normalcy was there has made it disheartening to truly process the effect that the coronavirus has had on every aspect of our lives. This pandemic has disrupted, delayed and dismissed the distractions that connect us, especially sports.
We want the games back, need them back, but they aren’t immune to what’s happening. And that’s what makes this time so disconcerting. Whitney Houston’s rendition of the national anthem at the Super Bowl in 1991 gave Americans comfort and pride during the first Iraq conflict. The Yankees helped New York move on after 9/11. The Saints brought New Orleans together after Katrina. You can find countless other examples but that’s what these games do — aside from giving dispersed communities a common purpose, from giving generations a shared experience of joy, triumph and sorrow.
After Rudy Gobert’s COVID-19 diagnosis forced NBA commissioner Adam Silver’s hand and gave cause to…
