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The NBA on Wednesday has announced its revised rules on coaching attire and face mask guidelines for the upcoming season as the league tries to navigate through games without the advantage of being inside a bubble.
According to reports from Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe of ESPN, all coaches must wear their face masks at all times during games. The guidelines added that “coaches must not regularly pull down their face masks more than is occasionally necessary under the circumstances to perform essential coaching duties.”
This is a stricter rule than the one the NBA imposed in the bubble in Orlando, where only a select number of coaches wore face masks during games.
In addition, coaches must don business attire, such as dress shirts, pants, socks, and shoes. Sports jackets are no longer required.
Coaches must wear masks at all times with limited exceptions when at team facilities or arena, during team travel and during practices and games, sources tell ESPN. https://t.co/NemTeew00d
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 9, 2020
NBA Coaches Association president Rick Carlisle of the Dallas Mavericks told ESPN that he is confident about the extra precautions the league is taking, with COVID-19 still prevalent.
“As we enter the season, all of the protocols and daily testing and travel reduction leave us feeling that we've taken the proper precautions to be as safe as possible. That said, we know there are many more variables this season, and we'll need to be flexible and able to pivot quickly.”
Last week, the NBA sent out a 154-page health and safety guide for the new season. The document includes guidelines for players on how to practice social distancing while eating in planes, where they can eat on the road, and how they can remain isolated from hotel staff, among others.
Regular tests will still be conducted throughout the season. Players and the team's 45-person party will be tested twice daily.
