LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Virtual fans and piped in crowd noise. A head-to-head between two ex-Finals MVPs played in front of a smattering of real faces. A battle for Los Angeles some 3,000 miles from Staples Center.
The NBA is back.
Opening night in the NBA’s resumed season was finally upon us Thursday, and what a strange experience. A late-season Lakers-Clippers game would be a near impossible ticket in Los Angeles. Fans would pack LA Live hours before tipoff. Scalpers would have a field day. In the bubble, witnesses to this marquee matchup were a dozen or so media members, a few more NBA staffers and a handful of players who bussed over to watch from socially distanced seats.