As widespread panic has shocked the sports world, the WNBA had some influence from the NBA and committed itself to a “bubble”. The WNBA is conducting their bubble at the IMG Academy, a top tier highschool for athletics in Bradenton, Florida. Before arriving at the bubble, many players have opted out of the season due to Covid-19 concerns and for the current Black Lives Matter Movement. For the players who are playing the season, the league mandated a one week quarantine period for all players and staff, along with having three separate tests for Covid-19 before entering the bubble. As twelve teams arrived on July 6th for training camp, everything did not go as expected.
Teams are only allowed to have eighteen people for each team, including twelve players and six members of the coaching staff. Many were upset as the NBA is allowed to have nearly forty people per team, and that is just the beginning. There are only three places where players are staying, either on campus or in a hotel where they can be by themselves or with another player in a villa. When players and staff arrived, players had several complaints about the treatment they are receiving such as bedrooms, laundry, and the food quality. ESPN’s own Kayla Johnson tweeted about the conditions they are living in, one tweet shows a worm on the floor of her hotel room. Johnson also tweeted a video taken by one of the WNBA players where the laundry room in the complex is filled with mold and mouse traps.
What appears to be a worm found on the floor of one of the rooms pic.twitter.com/WRZYTxdbGo
— Kayla Johnson (@klajohnson) July 7, 2020
As the season goes on, the Players Association have been working with IMG to address and fix the several issues going on inside the bubble. The bubble has served its purpose, of protecting the players and staff from Covid-19. Out of the 139 players within the bubble, none have tested positive for Covid-19. In fact there hasn’t been a case since July 10th, which was the end of the initial quarantine period. During their time at the bubble, their families are allowed to come and stay with their family as they compete for a championship. Currently, the season is near its end as the Seattle Storm will face either the Connecticut Suns or the Las Vegas Aces for the title of WNBA Champions.