‘I Ain’t Playing’: LeBron Refuses to Play in Empty Arenas After Coronavirus Memo

The NBA told its teams to prepare to play in empty arenas in response to the coronavirus scare, but LeBron James says not a chance.

“The league circulated a memo to its teams Friday telling them to prepare in case it becomes necessary to play games without fans or media, as sports leagues in Europe have already done,” the AP reported. “The memo detailed potential actions that teams might need to take “if it were to become necessary to play a game with only essential staff present.”

However, when the league’s biggest star heard about the NBA’s plans, James was having none of it.

“We play games without the fans? Nah, that’s impossible,” James said. “I ain’t playing if I ain’t got the fans in the crowd. That’s who I play for. I play for my teammates, and I play for the fans. That’s what it’s all about. So if I show up to an arena and there ain’t no fans in there, I ain’t playing. They can do what they want to do.”

The NBA memo made it clear to teams that they should identify which staff would be essential to attend games, and begin the process of informing ticket holders of the changes.

According to the AP:

Teams should also be prepared “for the possibility of implementing temperature checks on players, team staff, referees, and anyone else who is essential to conducting such a game in the team’s arena.”

Contents of the memo were first reported by The Athletic.

The letter also says teams should plan for scenarios in which media could attend games under revised media policies.

The league had already sent a memo to teams this week offering 10 recommendations to players with hopes of decreasing risks of getting the virus — among them, not taking items such as pens, markers, balls and jerseys from autograph seekers.

Thee NBA is not alone in taking precautions. Several NCAA teams have also either canceled trips or played in front of empty crowds. In Italy, Italian soccer teams have been playing in front of empty seats for nearly a week.

Follow Dylan Gwinn on Twitter @themightygwinn