Referees gearing up for their return to NBA games, too

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — NBA referees have not had the same opportunities as players have to knock off the rust from the shutdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Players have been back on the court for a few weeks, with the majority of that time spent getting in individual workouts before practices could resume when the 22 teams arrived at the Walt Disney World bubble.

The referees didn't have that chance.

Right now, there’s a healthy amount of nervous anxiety for those who operate the whistles at NBA games with exhibition contests — the first opportunity for refs to call anything in roughly 4-1/2 months — set to begin next week. Like the players and coaches, referees are at Disney and quarantining for what could be a stay of at least a few weeks for most and potentially as much as three months for those who will be assigned to work the NBA Finals.

“Our referees are pros and they’re going to come here ready to work,” said Monty McCutchen, the NBA’s vice president and head of referee development and training. “From the mental side, we never took any time off, quite frankly.”

It will largely be business as usual for referees — though with two notable differences. The first of those is how the NBA Replay Center will still be operating in Secaucus, New Jersey, but the referees assigned with actually assisting in those situations will be on-site at Disney. The reason is because it didn’t make much logistical sense to send referees into the greater New York City area and have them adhere to local guidelines there by quarantining for 14 days before working games.

The replay-tasked referees will be working from a trailer in the broadcast compound outside the three arenas that will be used for games — with allowances, of course, made for...