It was not a time in his life, understandably, that Rudy Gobert is eager to revisit. No one wants to be connected so closely to the day that the N.B.A., suddenly infiltrated by the coronavirus, suspended its season.
Gobert, though, is realistic. He constantly sizes up situations in his rim-protecting role for the Utah Jazz. He understands better than most that there are some things even a supreme shot-blocker can’t swat away.
So he has known for some time what was coming this month. Copious coverage of the unhappy anniversary was inevitable, ready or not, one year removed from Gobert’s positive test for Covid-19 on March 11, 2020.