Alabama basketball coach Nate Oats doesn’t want to see conference tournaments canceled during the coronavirus pandemic.
A recent survey done by CBS Sports showed that 27% of D1 coaches think we should cancel the conference tournaments during the pandemic. (RELATED: David Hookstead Is The True King In The North When It Comes To College Football)
Every conf. tournament is still scheduled to be held. But will they? Should they? Nearly 30% of coaches I polled say no. Many of them in big leagues. Many of them on the record explaining why, and how, teams might try to opt out of league tourneys. Story: https://t.co/NhWTxgDiam
— Matt Norlander (@MattNorlander) January 21, 2021
Oats isn’t a fan of the idea, and made that clear during a Thursday interview with Paul Finebaum. Oats correctly pointed out that it’s still a title you can’t rob the players of, and it’s important to keep things as normal as possible.
You can watch his comments below.
“They’re both Championships, your kids will remember both for the rest of their lives.”
A survey out today suggested 1 in 4 NCAA Men’s hoops coaches would prefer cancelling conference tourneys this year. @nate_oats doesn’t agree: pic.twitter.com/O7RY9xOQwU
— Paul Finebaum (@finebaum) January 21, 2021
The more I hear Nate Oats speak, the more I’m really becoming a huge fan of this guy. In a world where fear porn is running rampant during the pandemic, Oats has been a solid voice of reason.
Let’s not forget, this is the same man who talked about the importance of mental health and how humans aren’t meant to be isolated with no end in sight.
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“We 100% should be playing basketball.” pic.twitter.com/QoHbML9Lwu
— Roger Hoover (@Roger_Hoover) December 10, 2020
He’s also 100% correct about playing the conference tournaments and preserving a sense of normalcy during the pandemic.
Obviously, we have to be safe and smart, but that doesn’t mean we have to hide in our basements forever. We can have sports and be safe. We’ve seen it done at the pro and college level.
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While I’m no fan of the SEC, Nate Oats is really becoming a vocal leader for sanity during the coronavirus pandemic.