Bubbleball: Inside the NBA's Fight to Save a Season

by Ben Golliver

Overview

A captivating account of the NBA’s strangest season ever, from shutdown to championship, from a prominent national basketball writer living inside the bubble

When NBA player Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19 in March 2020, the league shut down immediately, bringing a shocking, sudden pause to the season. As the pandemic raged, it looked as if it might be the first year in league history with no champion. But four months later, after meticulous planning, twenty-two teams resumed play in a "bub­ble" at Disney World-a restricted, single-site locale cut off from the outside world.

Due to health concerns, the league invited only a handful of reporters, who were required to sacrifice medical privacy, live in a hotel room for more than three months, and submit to daily coronavirus test­ing in hopes of keeping the bubble from bursting. In exchange for the constant monitoring and restricted movement, they were allowed into a basketball fan's dream, with a courtside seat at dozens of games in nearly empty arenas.

Ben Golliver, the national NBA writer for the The Washington Post, was one of those allowed access. Bubbleball is his account of the season and life inside, telling the story of how basketball bounced back from its shutdown, how players staged headline-grabbing social justice protests, and how Lakers star LeBron James chased his fourth ring in unconventional and unforgettable circumstances. Based on months of reporting in the exclusive, confined environment, this is an entertaining record of an extraordinary season.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781419755538
Publisher:	ABRAMS
Publication date:	05/04/2021
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	193,124
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Ben Golliver is the national NBA writer for the Washington Post, the host of Sports Illustrated’s Open Floor podcast, and the co-founder of the Greatest of all Talk NBA podcast. A graduate of the Johns Hopkins University’s Writing Seminars program, he has been covering the NBA since 2007. Previously a senior writer at Sports Illustrated, he joined the Washington Post in 2018 and lives in Los Angeles.

Table of Contents

1 Welcome to the Bubble 1

2 Shutdown 8

3 Data, Not the Date 17

4 Two Challenges 37

5 Final Pitch 49

6 Acclimation 61

7 Opening Night 73

8 Title Chase Commences 82

9 No Positives 103

10 Swept Out 112

11 Boycott 120

12 The Aftermath 138

13 Ousted 152

14 West Threats 166

15 Humiliated 179

16 Balls of Steel 190

17 Unauthorized Guest 200

18 Home Stretch 212

19 Mamba Shot 233

20 Old Man Game 248

21 Grand Opening, Grand Closing 255

22 Not So Fast 263

23 Champagne at Last 275

Afterword 286

Acknowledgments 295

Editorial Reviews

★ 06/01/2021

In March 2020, the NBA abruptly paused the 2019–20 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That July, in an effort to finish the season and crown a champion, the NBA created a "bubble" to keep players and coaches from being exposed to the virus. Washington Post basketball reporter Golliver, with this debut book, chronicles the 93 days he spent in the NBA bubble, including details of the league's security procedures and his time in quarantine. Golliver also reports on the experiences of players and team staff, including Rudy Gobert testing positive for the virus, and the death of Karl-Anthony Towns's mother. As Golliver adeptly tells, players had to not only overcome being isolated from their family and friends, but also meet the grueling physical challenge of performing on the court. His descriptions of games sometimes fall flat in comparison with players' real-life concerns, like the pandemic, protests against police violence, and the Milwaukee Bucks' boycotting a playoff game to bring awareness to the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Jacob Blake. VERDICT Beyond basketball, this book is an important cultural artifact of the impacts of COVID-19 on American life, as well as the interconnection of social justice and sports. An instant classic.—Chris Wilkes, Tazewell Cty. P.L., VA

Library Journal