LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLA. — The NBA believes it has considered possible way they can make the restarted season as safe as possible for everyone involved.
Referees at the NBA and WNBA restarts are using the same whistles as they always have — albeit with one subtle but important addition. A small black bag is being slipped onto each whistle, designed to collect any spittle that might emanate from a referee's mouth and through the device itself when being used during play.
"Obviously, with health and wellness being in the forefront of everything that we're doing here in the bubble at Disney, we wanted to make sure that we had something in place for the whistles," said Monty McCutchen, the former NBA referee who is now a league vice president overseeing the referee program.