COLUMBIA, Mo. — On a recent conference call for the National Association of Basketball Coaches board of directors, college coaches discussed a range of topics all related to their sport and the coronavirus pandemic. Schedules, rule changes, academics, recruiting periods. Missouri’s Cuonzo Martin had another concern. What about the mental health of their athletes? Basketball players and athletes in several sports had their seasons frozen then canceled and now find themselves scattered around the country, away from their teammates, their coaches and their every-day resources and rituals.
“When you’ve been going and going and going and you stop like this, that’s not easy because they’re used to a routine,” Martin said last week.