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ESPN’s Royce Young recounts reporting on the scene of Rudy Gobert’s positive coronavirus test and the night the sports world changed forever

Though it may seem like a month ago, it’s been just one week since Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for the coronavirus, the NBA season was suspended, and the sports world suddenly came to a stop.
Millions were watching the events unfold that evening, either on TV or social media, and realizing in real time that everything was about to change in ways we’d never really seen before. ESPN NBA reporter Royce Young was at the center of all that, reporting from inside Oklahoma City’s Chesapeake Energy Arena and doing live hits on SportsCenter. Young spoke to Awful Announcing on the phone to recount a chaotic, unprecedented evening that sports fans will remember forever.
At the time, the NBA was trying to keep things as normal as possible. Media were barred from the locker room and had to keep a safe distance from players and coaches in interview rooms for podium-style press conferences.