Bubbleball: Inside the NBA's Fight to Save a Season
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- Create Date：2021-07-26 06:52:29
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Ben Golliver
- ISBN：1419755536
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Summary
A captivating account of the NBA’s strangest season ever， from shutdown to championship， from a prominent national basketball writer living inside the bubble
When NBA player Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19 in March 2020， the league shut down immediately， bringing a shocking， sudden pause to the season。 As the pandemic raged， it looked as if it might be the first year in league history with no champion。 But four months later， after meticulous planning， twenty-two teams resumed play in a "bubble" at Disney World-a restricted， single-site locale cut off from the outside world。
Due to health concerns， the league invited only a handful of reporters， who were required to sacrifice medical privacy， live in a hotel room for more than three months， and submit to daily coronavirus testing in hopes of keeping the bubble from bursting。 In exchange for the constant monitoring and restricted movement， they were allowed into a basketball fan's dream， with a courtside seat at dozens of games in nearly empty arenas。
Ben Golliver， the national NBA writer for the The Washington Post， was one of those allowed access。 Bubbleball is his account of the season and life inside， telling the story of how basketball bounced back from its shutdown， how players staged headline-grabbing social justice protests， and how Lakers star LeBron James chased his fourth ring in unconventional and unforgettable circumstances。 Based on months of reporting in the exclusive， confined environment， this is an entertaining record of an extraordinary season。
When NBA player Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19 in March 2020， the league shut down immediately， bringing a shocking， sudden pause to the season。 As the pandemic raged， it looked as if it might be the first year in league history with no champion。 But four months later， after meticulous planning， twenty-two teams resumed play in a "bubble" at Disney World-a restricted， single-site locale cut off from the outside world。
Due to health concerns， the league invited only a handful of reporters， who were required to sacrifice medical privacy， live in a hotel room for more than three months， and submit to daily coronavirus testing in hopes of keeping the bubble from bursting。 In exchange for the constant monitoring and restricted movement， they were allowed into a basketball fan's dream， with a courtside seat at dozens of games in nearly empty arenas。
Ben Golliver， the national NBA writer for the The Washington Post， was one of those allowed access。 Bubbleball is his account of the season and life inside， telling the story of how basketball bounced back from its shutdown， how players staged headline-grabbing social justice protests， and how Lakers star LeBron James chased his fourth ring in unconventional and unforgettable circumstances。 Based on months of reporting in the exclusive， confined environment， this is an entertaining record of an extraordinary season。
Reviews
Maria
，
I thought it was good。 I wish it would’ve been a little bit faster paced， as some of the in-depth analysis on the games was kind of dragged out。 The parts about the actual bubble process and how covid was ravaging the world， will be interesting to look back on in 20 years。 The writing was well done， but again， just too many stats and game analysis for my liking。
David Barney
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Good story about a chance the NBA took to wrap up the 19-20 basketball season because of the COVID-19 virus。 It was interesting how the it worked and all the challenges the players， coaches， and everyone had to navigate to complete the bubble。
Tom Gase
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Usually I would think that A） I'd never want to read about a 2020 experience and B） Anything where the author includes him/herself as much as Golliver does in this book。 But you know what？ It was perfect。 2020 was sooooo odd that the combination works perfect。 Washington Post basketball writer stayed in a bubble for three months to write this compelling， well-researched， well written detailed story about the NBA playoffs that year。 Although the events in this book happened less than a year ago， Usually I would think that A） I'd never want to read about a 2020 experience and B） Anything where the author includes him/herself as much as Golliver does in this book。 But you know what？ It was perfect。 2020 was sooooo odd that the combination works perfect。 Washington Post basketball writer stayed in a bubble for three months to write this compelling， well-researched， well written detailed story about the NBA playoffs that year。 Although the events in this book happened less than a year ago， some of the events felt like 10 years ago while some felt like last week。 This book does not seem like just a basketball book， although that's the main theme。 But it's also a book on COVID-19 as well as Black Lives Matter issues。 It's a powerful book at times and a book that I believe will hold the test of time even more as time goes on。 It's a five-star book now， but will be even more appreciated as time goes on。 I see myself re-reading this book every five to 10 years at least just to remind myself of some things， not just that my favorite team， the Lakers， win the title。 Golliver also has great stories on the Bucks， Clippers， Nuggets， Jazz， Blazers， Celtics， 76ers， Raptors， just to name a few。 Very well done。 Mr。 Golliver， you've earned my respect。 Look forward to reading more。 If you're a basketball fan， this is a MUST。 。。。more
pianogal
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This one took me a minute to get into this one。 It was very dense， but it was a decent read。 I'm not the biggest NBA fan， so I didn't watch this live， but it was interesting to read about on the back。 This one took me a minute to get into this one。 It was very dense， but it was a decent read。 I'm not the biggest NBA fan， so I didn't watch this live， but it was interesting to read about on the back。 。。。more
Kyle Stowell
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Nice trip down memory lane。 I really enjoyed this book and the bubble。
James M
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An interesting account of a sports writer life， inside the NBA playoff bubble。 Kudos to the NBA for successfully pulling this event off in the middle of the COVID 19 pandemic。 No one really believed they actually could。
Slappy
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My expectation was that this was going to have a lot of behind the scenes stuff， that the experience would be like reading a Michael Lewis or Bob Woodward book。 Instead we get 70% game recaps ， and 30% basic info about how the Disney bubble worked， none of which we didn't already know。 I knew as much about how the bubble worked before reading this book。 I was looking forward to this， & left very disappointed My expectation was that this was going to have a lot of behind the scenes stuff， that the experience would be like reading a Michael Lewis or Bob Woodward book。 Instead we get 70% game recaps ， and 30% basic info about how the Disney bubble worked， none of which we didn't already know。 I knew as much about how the bubble worked before reading this book。 I was looking forward to this， & left very disappointed 。。。more
Colin Altevogt
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I liked this book a lot。 It was very insightful and laid out well。 It just wasn’t super well written to warrant five stars。 Still a good purchase and worthwhile read。
Christopher Owens
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Subtitled: Inside the NBA’s Fight to Save a SeasonI received an advance reader copy of this book from the publisher through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review。Ben Golliver covers the NBA for the Washington Post， and while I don’t follow the NBA very closely I couldn’t resist reading about how they handled the end of the 2020 NBA season and playoffs in the Disney bubble。Golliver blends in a small amount of background about the Covid-19 virus， its rapid spread around the world， and the un Subtitled: Inside the NBA’s Fight to Save a SeasonI received an advance reader copy of this book from the publisher through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review。Ben Golliver covers the NBA for the Washington Post， and while I don’t follow the NBA very closely I couldn’t resist reading about how they handled the end of the 2020 NBA season and playoffs in the Disney bubble。Golliver blends in a small amount of background about the Covid-19 virus， its rapid spread around the world， and the underestimation and mishandling of the crisis by the Trump administration， but the real story begins when Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz tested positive for Covid prior to a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder。 The shockwave from that positive test led to the postponement of the NBA season。Bubbleball details the measures taken by the NBA that resulted in making the Disney complex one of the most secure places on earth with regard to preventing Covid infections – sadly， even more secure than the White House。 There is also a lot of material focusing on the actual basketball played in the bubble， with extensive stories about the teams and players who advanced to the latter stages。 As I said before， I don’t follow the NBA closely but I enjoyed reading about teams and players that I wasn’t very familiar with。I gave Bubbleball five stars。 Despite Golliver’s tales about the daily grind and pressure of life in the bubble， I couldn’t help but think it might have been a pretty cool place to be anyway。 。。。more
Brian
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Very insightful chronicle of the NBA Bubble and events surrounding it。 Ben does an amazing job of setting the sense of place in Orlando and what it was like to experience it。 He has a reporters mindset when he places world events into the context of living in isolation from the world。 I found it a terrific listen （despite some minor audio irregularities） from one of the foremost NBA writers in the business。
Patrick Rogan
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Open floor globe 🌎 🏀
Trevor Seigler
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When the NBA season went on hiatus in March of 2020， there was no guarantee that the season could be finished in any meaningful way with the spike in cases of COVID-19 throughout the nation。 As a brand， the NBA had to balance the responsibility to health concerns as well as its desire to crown a champion and keep its many employees （not just the players or coaches， but the staff at arenas and so on） from losing their livelihood。 The compromise solution turned out to be a "bubble" in which teams When the NBA season went on hiatus in March of 2020， there was no guarantee that the season could be finished in any meaningful way with the spike in cases of COVID-19 throughout the nation。 As a brand， the NBA had to balance the responsibility to health concerns as well as its desire to crown a champion and keep its many employees （not just the players or coaches， but the staff at arenas and so on） from losing their livelihood。 The compromise solution turned out to be a "bubble" in which teams and media could live on the ground of Disney World in Florida， playing out the rest of their season as almost prisoners at the Happiest Place on Earth。 To say that it was a surreal scenario would be an understatement。 Ben Golliver of the Washington Post was one of the media members allowed on "campus" at Disney World， and one of the few to go the distance for what ended up being 93 days on the job， covering all aspects not just of the basketball on the court but the social justice movements that sprang up in response to the murders of George Floyd， Breonna Taylor， and other Black Americans at the hands of law enforcement。 Add in the pressure of trying not to contaminate the bubble with a positive COVID test， and the pressures on the teams and those around them were enormous。 And yet， somehow the NBA was able to make it all work。 "Bubbleball" is as inside a chronicle of that weird season as any you'll find， and while it might seem too soon to look back at the event， it's nonetheless a great eyewitness account of how the players and media members responded to the conditions imposed on them by a global pandemic and a reckoning with America's long history of racial injustice。 Golliver traces the peculiar conditions of being in the bubble， the threat of boredom and the quest for something to keep the mind distracted， and he also shows how the bubble was a positive experience for social justice movements in that， with the players all in one place and （mostly） all of one voice， they could amplify their dismay， disgust， and outrage at the murders taking place with a megaphone that might have been easier for the world at large to ignore if they were dispersed throughout the country。 A writer who's covered the NBA for over a decade， Golliver knows how to get to the heart of the story， providing illuminating profiles in miniature of the players who made an impact during the bubble run （from the usual suspects in superstars like LeBron James， Kawhi Leonard， and Jimmy Butler， to the lesser-known but important figures in both basketball and social justice movements）。 Balancing the on-the-court access with the behind-the-scenes drama， and capturing the odd atmosphere of playing in a virtually empty arena far from home， Golliver brings to life the hardships and hard-fought-for moments of playing your sport in circumstances unprecedented in history。 For now， it seems that we're potentially turning a corner from the impact that COVID-19 has wrought， and we may never need to retreat to bubbles to ensure the safety of ourselves and others。 But it could just as easily be that another wave of this pandemic， or a new one not yet dreamed up by all the most professional risk-assessment experts the world over， could strike again in our lifetime。 For the moment that the NBA got together to play and to protest， "Bubbleball" is a great documentation of what we can only hope is a once-in-a-lifetime set of circumstances。 。。。more
Ken Heard
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Getting into this book at first was like acclimating， I imagine， to life inside the NBA bubble。 I didn't really know what to expect and I was beginning to get bored with Ben Golliver's descriptions of what he packed for the trip， the issues of getting to Orlando and his fears of the pandemic。But then I realized he did that to set up both the tedium of the seclusion of the bubble mixed with the excitement of the games and the book became a brilliant look at a very bizarre time in our sports world Getting into this book at first was like acclimating， I imagine， to life inside the NBA bubble。 I didn't really know what to expect and I was beginning to get bored with Ben Golliver's descriptions of what he packed for the trip， the issues of getting to Orlando and his fears of the pandemic。But then I realized he did that to set up both the tedium of the seclusion of the bubble mixed with the excitement of the games and the book became a brilliant look at a very bizarre time in our sports world。The game recounts were excellent and Golliver added anecdotes about players and back history that really added to the enjoyment of this book。 While， maybe at first monotonous， his walks around the track at the Orlando complex became something to look for。 He also added insight into the development of the virus and the fears we all had early on when it was beginning。 Golliver may have been a tad paranoid about wearing masks and being too close to people， but in hindsight and after thousands and thousands died in the U。S。， that fear seemed more validated。 Covid really messed up sports and at that time， in bitter resentment， I quit following them as closely as I normally， obsessively do。 I knew who won the championship， but didn't know much details。 Golliver's book provides all that detail， stories about the players， the NBA's insane， yet doable， idea to save the sport and all the behind-the-scenes things。 （I had no concept of the massive amounts of packages that were sent to and from the resort complex daily， and， although I was a reporter for three decades， didn't even think of how they'd be put in the "worst" of the hotels while the higher-seeded basketball teams were in the most luxurious digs）。This one could be considered a history book years down the road。 While Michael Lewis may have penned the best look at the virus and its impact， Golliver's book captures a societal moment in sports。 。。。more
Adam Fisher
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Man， I really wanted to like this book。 I'm a fan of the author and I listen to his podcast。 I was hoping this book would be an in-depth analysis and behind-the-scenes look at the NBA playoff bubble in 2020。 There IS some of that， but only about 25 percent of the book。 The rest is just a cut-and-dried， staid recapping of the playoffs。 There's way too much writing about the actual games。 A lot of it reads like a Wikipedia page of the 2019-20 NBA season -- just a listing of facts。 I was disappoint Man， I really wanted to like this book。 I'm a fan of the author and I listen to his podcast。 I was hoping this book would be an in-depth analysis and behind-the-scenes look at the NBA playoff bubble in 2020。 There IS some of that， but only about 25 percent of the book。 The rest is just a cut-and-dried， staid recapping of the playoffs。 There's way too much writing about the actual games。 A lot of it reads like a Wikipedia page of the 2019-20 NBA season -- just a listing of facts。 I was disappointed how dry the writing is。 I'm not sure who this book is for。 If you're a big NBA fan， you followed the playoffs and already know all this info。 If you're not an NBA fan， you won't care enough to read the book。 。。。more
Corey
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A great summary of the bubble/pandemic/social justice movement of 2020 viewed through the subjective lens of someone who lived it， a fun read。
Jacob
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It’s a little tricky to understand who this book is for。 Most of us that follow the NBA closely know the main story beats of the 19-20 season。。。 Morey’s pro-democracy pro-HongKong tweet， the rivals in LA， Giannis in the east， Kobe’s untimely death， Rudy testing positive for Covid， the decision to do the Disney Bubble in the midst of the George Floyd and Breonna Taylor protests， and then we all know who won and lost all the games。 The most interesting part of the book， then， is the personal behin It’s a little tricky to understand who this book is for。 Most of us that follow the NBA closely know the main story beats of the 19-20 season。。。 Morey’s pro-democracy pro-HongKong tweet， the rivals in LA， Giannis in the east， Kobe’s untimely death， Rudy testing positive for Covid， the decision to do the Disney Bubble in the midst of the George Floyd and Breonna Taylor protests， and then we all know who won and lost all the games。 The most interesting part of the book， then， is the personal behind the scenes peeks into Bubble life。 The two best parts of the book were when he covered the Bucks game boycott and when his bus got stuck in a protest for Salaythis Melvin on the way back to the hotels after a Lakers game。 The coverage of the players attempts to highlight the Black Lives Matter movement were some of the most interesting tidbits。 Ben Golliver loves basketball and if you love basketball you’ll probably enjoy this。 It’s just not as surprising as I hoped。 。。。more
Colby Allen
，
Loved the firsthand accounts of life inside the bubble。 Felt a bit repetitive once the recaps of the playoff games began due to them being such a recent memory。
Qwantu Amaru
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One for the history booksWhen I heard Ben speaking on the No Dunks podcast about this book， I knew I had to read it and it did not disappoint。 Chock full of an insider view to the NBA bubble this will serve as the defining document for diehard basketball fans around the world。 Check it out！
Lance
，
When the NBA shut down operations on March 11， 2020 after Rudy Goebert of the Utah Jazz tested positive for the coronavirus， the entire sports world， as well as the league， was thrown into disarray。 Amid all the uncertainty， the NBA was working on a plan to try to salvage the season and crown a legitimate champion。 How the league did this is captured in this excellent book by Washington Post NBA writer Ben Golliver。Usually when an author who is not an athlete or part of the subject inserts thems When the NBA shut down operations on March 11， 2020 after Rudy Goebert of the Utah Jazz tested positive for the coronavirus， the entire sports world， as well as the league， was thrown into disarray。 Amid all the uncertainty， the NBA was working on a plan to try to salvage the season and crown a legitimate champion。 How the league did this is captured in this excellent book by Washington Post NBA writer Ben Golliver。Usually when an author who is not an athlete or part of the subject inserts themself into a book， I believe that it distracts from the actual topic。 That was not the case for this book， as Golliver's experiences in the "bubble" where all personnel associated with the league's restart – players， coaches， officials， media and others – were housed and worked， was not only enlightening but absolutely necessary to illustrate what everyone was going through at the Disney sports complex。 Another excellent aspect of the book was how the players responded to the shooting of George Floyd， Breonna Taylor and Jacob Blake – the most prominent cases of police shootings of Black people。 The social justice messages that were on display on the court， player jerseys and stated by players and coaches were just as much a part of the bubble experience as basketball and virus testing。 The section on the atmosphere and discussion in the Milwaukee Bucks dressing room when they learned about the Blake shooting was especially profound。 Because the locker rooms were much smaller than those of NBA arenas and the soundproofing was not as effective， Golliver was privy to information that he normally wouldn't be and as a result， it was a moving section about the Bucks' decision to not play the Orlando Magic that night。 Of course， the basketball writing was very good as well。 He covered all rounds of the playoffs and the completion of the regular season with just the right amount of detail。 He didn't get too bogged down with play-by-play descriptions， but these were more than just brief overviews as well。 As well as the prose was written， however， when the Los Angeles Lakers were crowned as the 2020 champions after the Miami Heat surprisingly gave them six tough games in the Finals， much like the players， readers will find themselves glad that the odyssey was coming to end。 Basketball aficionados will love this book for the inside look of life in the bubble while more casual fans will appreciate this look at the strange but completed 2019-20 NBA season。 I wish to thank Abrams Press for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review。 https://sportsbookguy。blogspot。com/20。。。 。。。more
Muneer Uddin
，
This book is the first one I've seen about a major sports league trying to make a go of it during the 2020 pandemic。 It's a worthy read about the subject。The initial chapters were a struggle for me。 I first thought it was because the book was boring and not for me。 But as I read on and reflected， I realized that Golliver was expertly recounting the feelings of aimlessness and general despair most of us had。 It is still viscerally uncomfortable for me to think about what was happening in March an This book is the first one I've seen about a major sports league trying to make a go of it during the 2020 pandemic。 It's a worthy read about the subject。The initial chapters were a struggle for me。 I first thought it was because the book was boring and not for me。 But as I read on and reflected， I realized that Golliver was expertly recounting the feelings of aimlessness and general despair most of us had。 It is still viscerally uncomfortable for me to think about what was happening in March and April 2020。 I wasn't prepared to recount it so soon。The action in the book picks up once Golliver reaches the bubble。 I enjoyed the little details he talked about， like taking pictures of the same egret and seeing different coaches and luminaries while out on his walks。 It's this type of atmosphere that takes a reader to a place instead of reading a bunch of bland facts。 I can get that information from wire reports from those games。 It's the behind the scenes action that I read these types of books for。 Golliver certainly delivered in the regard。The social justice crises around the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor， as well as the Jacob Blake shooting were expertly discussed。 The anecdotes captured the anger with the Floyd and Blake incidents， as well as the helplessness when Taylor's killers weren't indicted。 the discussions about the stoppage of play because of the Milwaukee Bucks was especially enlightening。 I didn't feel like there were good or bad guys in that situation， just people processing their grief differently。 If only all writing about the horrors of police brutality could be so evocative， perhaps the country could experience the fear and pain of people of color。I recommend this book to all fans of the NBA， as well as people who want a snapshot of how one group of people dealt with the 2020 pandemic。 。。。more
Jon
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