EDitorial: Cancel the NBA season because it’s the right thing to do

He got heat for saying it, but I think he was right.

Shaquille O’Neal touched off a firestorm almost as big as he is, when he said the NBA season should be scrapped.

More than two months have passed since the last NBA regular season game pre-COVID 19. Even if the NBA resumes, it will likely be three months or more before the first games are played.

So, just exactly what will those games look like?

Players will reportedly be quarantined in sites such as Las Vegas and Orlando.

The games, likely all the way to the Finals, would be played with no fans.

What about the 10 teams in both conferences who have no chance of making the playoffs? The efforts of those teams will have a direct bearing on who does and does not make the playoffs?

Bad basketball with no fans?

Please.

The end of the season would be a bummer for the Pelicans. With 18 games to play New Orleans was only three games out of the final playoff spot in the West.

The Pels were a team on the rise.

Could Zion lead the Pelicans to playoffs in his first season? It wouldn’t be such a bad thing if we never knew.

We could just change the wording of the question to the following:

Could Zion lead the Pelicans to the playoffs in his first full season?

Works for me.

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said the players want to play.

I am sure he’s correct.

There’s no doubt the broadcast ratings would be a bonanza. However, just because the players want to play, doesn’t make it the best idea moving forward.

Respected former NBA player and head coach George Karl joined Shaq as one of those who say it is time to pull the plug on the season.

“Time to call the season,” tweeted Karl.     “It honors the game better.”

And the game will survive.

Next October or whenever the NBA returns, viewership will be up. There may even be fans in the stands at places like Madison Square Garden in New York.

That’s the way it should be.

In 1994, baseball’s World Series was cancelled due to labor strife.

The game survived.

So will NBA basketball.

It is time for commissioner Adam Silver to lead and make some of his highly paid constituents in the NBA angry.

Cancel the season.