Could a bubble work for Big East basketball?

If the Big East colleges are all offering classes online-only, or substantially online, then there would be a minimal degree of hypocrisy in having a basketball season in a bubble setting (and it would also maximize safety for the student-athletes).

On the other hand, if the Big East colleges are offering classes in-person or substantially in-person, then sending the basketball players to go play in a bubble setting in which their academics would be materially different from the other students would only further expose the rank hypocrisy of collegiate sports.

Not that there's much of a pretense anymore that the kids are anything other than non-compensated or undercompensated professional athletes in a form of indentured servitude to the schools, who employ them as indirect (reputational) and direct revenue generators.

As much as I love the game, I'd shed few tears if (as Beast suggests) "the system" collapsed because there were no games for a year. "The system" is thoroughly rotten in its present form, and maybe its collapse would lead to something better or at least more honest and transparent.
 
Back on topic. Yes, I do believe a bubble could work for the Big East. I think the NCAA will have to follow the lead of the NBA and the NHL in that regard.
 
[quote="Tonyinfairfield " post=397097]Back on topic. Yes, I do believe a bubble could work for the Big East. I think the NCAA will have to follow the lead of the NBA and the NHL in that regard.[/quote]

thanks Tony - I moved your other post to the NBA thread to keep it on topic.
 
[quote="Tonyinfairfield " post=397097]Back on topic. Yes, I do believe a bubble could work for the Big East. I think the NCAA will have to follow the lead of the NBA and the NHL in that regard.[/quote]

Yeah it can work but from the players perspective why? As you can see this week the bubble is taking it's toll on the NBA players, not just with the recent events but Paul George and others had previously addressed how the isolation has adversely affected them emotionally.

But at least they are making $1-30 mill to participate. The kids are not. At the end of the day it is plainly apparent that be it college football or hoops the actual athletes are just so much chattel being asked to put on a show for the public's enjoyment and the institutions profits regardless of the health and wellness risks.
 
[quote="austour" post=397101][quote="Tonyinfairfield " post=397097]Back on topic. Yes, I do believe a bubble could work for the Big East. I think the NCAA will have to follow the lead of the NBA and the NHL in that regard.[/quote]

Yeah it can work but from the players perspective why? As you can see this week the bubble is taking it's toll on the NBA players, not just with the recent events but Paul George and others had previously addressed how the isolation has adversely affected them emotionally.

But at least they are making $1-30 mill to participate. The kids are not. At the end of the day it is plainly apparent that be it college football or hoops the actual athletes are just so much chattel being asked to put on a show for the public's enjoyment and the institutions profits regardless of the health and wellness risks.[/quote]

You make a solid case, but it seems colleges are inching toward such a plan.
 
[quote="austour" post=397101][quote="Tonyinfairfield " post=397097]Back on topic. Yes, I do believe a bubble could work for the Big East. I think the NCAA will have to follow the lead of the NBA and the NHL in that regard.[/quote]

Yeah it can work but from the players perspective why? As you can see this week the bubble is taking it's toll on the NBA players, not just with the recent events but Paul George and others had previously addressed how the isolation has adversely affected them emotionally.

But at least they are making $1-30 mill to participate. The kids are not. At the end of the day it is plainly apparent that be it college football or hoops the actual athletes are just so much chattel being asked to put on a show for the public's enjoyment and the institutions profits regardless of the health and wellness risks.[/quote]

It would be interesting to see a poll of Big East basketball players to see if a bubble is acceptable, especially in a shortened season. My guess would be that most would choose a bubble over not playing at all. We are talking about young men that spend more of their waking hours practicing, playing and thinking about basketball than any other activity. Getting to play under adverse conditions would be for many better than giving up a season. For seniors, it means never playing another college game. In fact, many would want to play without a bubble, knowing that the likelihood of severe outcomes for healthy young men is very , very small.
 
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[quote="Ray Morgan" post=397103][quote="austour" post=397101][quote="Tonyinfairfield " post=397097]Back on topic. Yes, I do believe a bubble could work for the Big East. I think the NCAA will have to follow the lead of the NBA and the NHL in that regard.[/quote]

Yeah it can work but from the players perspective why? As you can see this week the bubble is taking it's toll on the NBA players, not just with the recent events but Paul George and others had previously addressed how the isolation has adversely affected them emotionally.

But at least they are making $1-30 mill to participate. The kids are not. At the end of the day it is plainly apparent that be it college football or hoops the actual athletes are just so much chattel being asked to put on a show for the public's enjoyment and the institutions profits regardless of the health and wellness risks.[/quote]

It would be interesting to see a poll of Big East basketball players to see if a bubble is acceptable, especially in a shortened season. My guess would be that most would choose a bubble over not playing at all. We are talking about young men that spend more of their waking hours practicing, playing and thinking about basketball than any other activity. Getting to play under adverse conditions would be for many better than giving up a season. For seniors, it means never playing another college game. In fact, many would want to play without a bubble, knowing that the likelihood of severe outcomes for healthy young men is very , very small.[/quote

I've made similar comments in the past. That's likely true, but as it goes on, they'd probably hate every minute. And that relative 'immunity' you cite wouldn't hold for coaches and / or Staff--or fans, if they'd be permitted.
 
[quote="austour" post=397101][quote="Tonyinfairfield " post=397097]Back on topic. Yes, I do believe a bubble could work for the Big East. I think the NCAA will have to follow the lead of the NBA and the NHL in that regard.[/quote]

Yeah it can work but from the players perspective why? As you can see this week the bubble is taking it's toll on the NBA players, not just with the recent events but Paul George and others had previously addressed how the isolation has adversely affected them emotionally.

But at least they are making $1-30 mill to participate. The kids are not. At the end of the day it is plainly apparent that be it college football or hoops the actual athletes are just so much chattel being asked to put on a show for the public's enjoyment and the institutions profits regardless of the health and wellness risks.[/quote]

So Paul George was depressed and isolated having to play in the NBA bubble. Are you freaking kidding me?

For some perspective, may I suggest you read the NY Times article below about the NYC emergency room doctor who killed herself at the height of the Covid pandemic because she felt she wasn't doing enough to help her patients.
Geesh.

As for the student athletes, yes- they are being used as profit machines for the schools. That's hardly news. They are willing participants - as are you and I, the fans. It's not like the students walk away from the experience empty handed. What's your suggested solution?

[URL]https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/11/nyregion/lorna-breen-suicide-coronavirus.html[/URL]
 
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Tom Nichols wrote a book about that's somewhat relevant to this, it's called The Death of Expertise.

There's a reason schools stand in loco parentis. It's one of many societal judgments based on the presumptive association of age and wisdom.
 
[quote="Ray Morgan" post=397103][quote="austour" post=397101][quote="Tonyinfairfield " post=397097]Back on topic. Yes, I do believe a bubble could work for the Big East. I think the NCAA will have to follow the lead of the NBA and the NHL in that regard.[/quote]

Yeah it can work but from the players perspective why? As you can see this week the bubble is taking it's toll on the NBA players, not just with the recent events but Paul George and others had previously addressed how the isolation has adversely affected them emotionally.

But at least they are making $1-30 mill to participate. The kids are not. At the end of the day it is plainly apparent that be it college football or hoops the actual athletes are just so much chattel being asked to put on a show for the public's enjoyment and the institutions profits regardless of the health and wellness risks.[/quote]

It would be interesting to see a poll of Big East basketball players to see if a bubble is acceptable, especially in a shortened season. My guess would be that most would choose a bubble over not playing at all. We are talking about young men that spend more of their waking hours practicing, playing and thinking about basketball than any other activity. Getting to play under adverse conditions would be for many better than giving up a season. For seniors, it means never playing another college game. In fact, many would want to play without a bubble, knowing that the likelihood of severe outcomes for healthy young men is very , very small.[/quote]

Yeah, one thing I did not take into account in my original post is that almost all of the players would not have wives and children they had to leave behind to go into the bubble which would clearly make the situation exponentially more stressful.
 
[quote="P Simmons" post=397107][quote="austour" post=397101][quote="Tonyinfairfield " post=397097]Back on topic. Yes, I do believe a bubble could work for the Big East. I think the NCAA will have to follow the lead of the NBA and the NHL in that regard.[/quote]

Yeah it can work but from the players perspective why? As you can see this week the bubble is taking it's toll on the NBA players, not just with the recent events but Paul George and others had previously addressed how the isolation has adversely affected them emotionally.

But at least they are making $1-30 mill to participate. The kids are not. At the end of the day it is plainly apparent that be it college football or hoops the actual athletes are just so much chattel being asked to put on a show for the public's enjoyment and the institutions profits regardless of the health and wellness risks.[/quote]

So Paul George was depressed and isolated having to play in the NBA bubble. Are you freaking kidding me?

For some perspective, may I suggest you read the NY Times article below about the NYC emergency room doctor who killed herself at the height of the Covid pandemic because she felt she wasn't doing enough to help her patients.
Geesh.

[/quote]

I'm sure he's sorry he disappointed you having problems of his own.
 
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[quote="austour" post=397101][quote="Tonyinfairfield " post=397097]Back on topic. Yes, I do believe a bubble could work for the Big East. I think the NCAA will have to follow the lead of the NBA and the NHL in that regard.[/quote]

Yeah it can work but from the players perspective why? As you can see this week the bubble is taking it's toll on the NBA players, not just with the recent events but Paul George and others had previously addressed how the isolation has adversely affected them emotionally.

But at least they are making $1-30 mill to participate. The kids are not. At the end of the day it is plainly apparent that be it college football or hoops the actual athletes are just so much chattel being asked to put on a show for the public's enjoyment and the institutions profits regardless of the health and wellness risks.[/quote]

I don’t disagree with your point per se but where does one’s responsibility to themselves, their health and well being, take priority? One can only be chattel if they allow it, and anyone can and should just say no I won’t play under those circumstances if that is the way they feel, there is no gun to anyone’s head forcing them to play. While pro athletes certainly get a bigger piece of the pie now, athletes being used and abused for monetary gains for others at all levels of sport is nothing new, and we are all enablers to that reality.
Did anyone in the NFL, including fans, give a rats behind about CTE until it became to big to ignore? No.
Does anyone really care, including fans, about the corruption sneaker companies have permeated throughout college sports on the backs of Asian child slave labor? No.
Has anyone, including fans, risen up and objected to colleges using athletes forever, providing no education to many, while inundating the public with PR about the “student athlete” while all the while throwing players away like yesterday’s garbage when eligibility runs out or injuries take their toll? No.
While COVID is certainly different in some ways, it is also sadly the “same old, same old” in others.
Personally, I don’t think sports should return without fans, but obviously that is a personal opinion. I found our games in the BE tournament weird and had the same reaction with the very short time I turned on the pro sports that have “returned.”
 
[quote="Logen" post=397170][quote="austour" post=397101][quote="Tonyinfairfield " post=397097]Back on topic. Yes, I do believe a bubble could work for the Big East. I think the NCAA will have to follow the lead of the NBA and the NHL in that regard.[/quote]

Yeah it can work but from the players perspective why? As you can see this week the bubble is taking it's toll on the NBA players, not just with the recent events but Paul George and others had previously addressed how the isolation has adversely affected them emotionally.

But at least they are making $1-30 mill to participate. The kids are not. At the end of the day it is plainly apparent that be it college football or hoops the actual athletes are just so much chattel being asked to put on a show for the public's enjoyment and the institutions profits regardless of the health and wellness risks.[/quote]

I don’t disagree with your point per se but where does one’s responsibility to themselves, their health and well being, take priority? One can only be chattel if they allow it, and anyone can and should just say no I won’t play under those circumstances if that is the way they feel, there is no gun to anyone’s head forcing them to play. While pro athletes certainly get a bigger piece of the pie now, athletes being used and abused for monetary gains for others at all levels of sport is nothing new, and we are all enablers to that reality.
Did anyone in the NFL, including fans, give a rats behind about CTE until it became to big to ignore? No.
Does anyone really care, including fans, about the corruption sneaker companies have permeated throughout college sports on the backs of Asian child slave labor? No.
Has anyone, including fans, risen up and objected to colleges using athletes forever, providing no education to many, while inundating the public with PR about the “student athlete” while all the while throwing players away like yesterday’s garbage when eligibility runs out or injuries take their toll? No.
While COVID is certainly different in some ways, it is also sadly the “same old, same old” in others.
Personally, I don’t think sports should return without fans, but obviously that is a personal opinion. I found our games in the BE tournament weird and had the same reaction with the very short time I turned on the pro sports that have “returned.”[/quote]

Logen, I don't disagree with you either.
 
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