The Los Angeles Lakers won the 2020 NBA championship, also known as the ‘Bubble Championship’, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The NBA resumed its 2019-20 season in the NBA Bubble, an isolated zone created for league operations at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at the Walt Disney World in Bay Lake, Florida. The Lakers’ Championship win inside the 2020 bubble has prompted a lot of debate as to the title’s worth compared to other normal Championships.
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Damian Lillard recently appeared on the Knuckleheads Podcast with Quentin Richardson and Darius Miles, where he spoke about the Lakers winning the Championship in 2020. The Bucks superstar believes that the players were at their sharpest during the Bubble, and the Lakers should get more recognition for winning the championship that season than they currently have.
During the podcast, Lillard said, “I think it [the Bubble chip] count extra. Cause as an NBA player, one thing people who haven’t played in the NBA won’t understand is like the traveling, changing time zones, getting on the plane, getting off the plane, moving around-You got your everyday life. And it can get heavy.”
And in the bubble it was, ain’t no travel, your treatment is right there, like they had cold tubs at the pool waiting after every game, there was bus to the gym, it was so light! I mean there was no travel, the practice was right there, it was all we had to think about. Everybody was like their sharpest,” Dame added, implying that the Bubble provided an equal opportunity for everybody to compete with their full potential.
Lillard further mentioned how he was well-rested and in good shape during the NBA Bubble. He averaged 24.3 points, 4.3 assists, and 3.5 rebounds in 4 games during the 2020 playoffs while playing for the Portland Trail Blazers.
It wasn’t just for himself. Dame also mentioned other players, such as Donovan Mitchell and Jamal Murray, who were also at their best during this period.
The Bubble proved to be an extremely effective project for the NBA, lasting five consecutive weeks with zero players testing positive for COVID-19 in that period. The 2019-20 season concluded on October 11, 2020, with the LA Lakers winning the championship title, earning LeBron James his fourth ring and Anthony Davis his first.
Danny Green considers the Bubble Championship as one of the hardest ones won by players so far
While Damian Lillard might claim the Bubble to have been a fruitful experience for him and some other players, the same cannot be attributed to all. It received a mixed reaction from players, with many, such as Joel Embiid, complaining about their meals and other things.
Others, such as Aaron Gordon and Mike Conley Jr., described this experience as strange and surreal. Clippers star Paul George commented on how being in the bubble also had a drastic toll on players’ mental health during that period.
Danny Green, who was then playing for the Lakers, commented on No Chill with Gilbert Arenas that the Bubble was his hardest championship experience. Like George’s concern, Green also highlighted the mental and emotional strain experienced by players during that time.
Though winning the championship was a great experience, Green recalls that the period still gives him PTSD thinking about the troubles that he and his team had to go through during that time.
