Raptors able to practise despite COVID-19 cases

His symptoms of COVID-19 were bad. His worry over his wife and kids was significantly worse.

New Toronto Raptors forward Aron Baynes was diagnosed with COVID-19 last summer, and suffered symptoms that “knocked me on my butt.” But he was far more concerned about his pregnant wife and asthmatic daughter, both considered high-risk. 

“The worst thing about it was the stress of initially not knowing if I was going to pass it on to my family. Not knowing if they were going to get extremely sick and what the repercussions of what were going to be on their end,” Baynes said Tuesday. “It was just complete dread.”

The Raptors are feeling the impact of the global pandemic after three members of the organization tested positive. While the team, which announced the news Monday, didn’t reveal the three — or even say if they were players — citing privacy concerns,, coach Nick Nurse said the news hit close to home.

“It does add a sense of awareness,” Nurse said. “You look around and see something happen in another sport, or another team, or college, or whatever, and you’re kind of getting these awareness reminders because it’s kind of what’s going on. That’s the way things are moving in the world of sports right now. 

“But yeah, it hits a little closer to home. . . And do I get in front of the team and have some commentary on it? Yeah, I do.”

Nurse said the “commentary” would be a regular part of his role this season.

The positive tests didn’t interrupt practices, and Nurse said he planned a scrimmage on Wednesday ahead of their pre-season opener Saturday in Charlotte. 

Nurse said losing players to quarantine isn’t that much different than missing players to injuries , something the Raptors were well-versed in last season. They still managed to finish second in the Eastern Conference.

That ability to be flexible with the roster could come in handy in the coming weeks. 

“As we all look around, this pandemic in the sports world . . . there’s obviously a lot going on and not much you can prepare for other than say ‘Hey, let’s stay flexible and do the best we can. When something comes up, do the best we can,'” Nurse said. “I know that’s a pretty simple answer, but that’s the way I look at it.”

Baynes, a New Zealand-borne Aussie who was signed during free agency a couple of weeks ago, said his family also got the coronavirus, although he was hit the worst. 

“Thankfully I’m fit and have a good diet so I was able to overcome it,” he said. 

The global pandemic has ravaged the sports world, and the NBA, playing without the safety net of last summer’s bubble at Walt Disney World, wasn’t expected to be immune. In the pre-camp league-wide testing that red-flagged the three Raptors, about nine per cent of the league’s players tested positive. 

The NFL has been hit hard. The league announced 45 new cases on Tuesday, after two straight weeks of about 75 new cases a week.

It’s been suggested the basketball season could be hit even harder than football — rosters are smaller, there are more games per week, and basketball is played indoors.

Because of Canada’s travel restrictions, the Raptors are playing their home games in Florida, which has topped one million cases and has seen nearly 20,000 resident deaths since March.

Baynes, who turns 34 on Wednesday, said he feels safe in Tampa, and praised the health protocols around the team. 

“The hardest thing for us is going out to get a test every single day. That’s as tough as it is for us,” he said. “We’re protected, we’re looked after so well and, sure, we can’t do some things some days but at the end of the day we’re lucky to be able to do what we do.

“There are a lot of people out there doing a lot worse and if that’s the biggest stress for us every single day then that’s fine. That’s no skin off our back.”

The Raptors family grew by one on Friday. Baynes’ wife Rachel Adekponya gave birth to the couple’s third child, a daughter, in Tampa. The couple had moved to Florida earlier than the rest of the team to get settled before the baby arrived.

“We did have to make a quick decision as to where we’re staying, having the baby in Phoenix (where he played last season after stints in San Antonio, Detroit and Boston), or whether we were going to uproot everything and make it complete chaos here for the first few days,” Baynes said. “We definitely chose the latter, which has been fun to navigate. 

“Full credit to the missus, she’s been amazing as always. She just proves she’s my better half and tougher than me every single day.”

When a reporter said congrats on Tuesday’s Zoom call, Baynes replied: “Everyone keeps saying congratulations — but full disclosure, I didn’t do much.”

The Raptors play Saturday and Monday in Charlotte before hosting Miami on Dec. 18. Their 72-game regular season is slated to open Dec. 23 in Tampa against New Orleans.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 8, 2020. 

The Canadian Press