Playing in the Orlando bubble this summer poses a unique challenge for any NBA player, especially for those with young families. Guests won’t be allowed to come to Orlando until the second round of the playoffs, which means players won’t see their families for roughly two months if they are able to advance in the postseason to the Conference Semifinals. Gordon Hayward has an even bigger conundrum though as he prepares to enter the Orlando bubble.
His wife Robyn is expecting their fourth child in September. What is normally a quiet time on the NBA calendar will be right in the heart of the NBA postseason with the Conference Finals expected to begin on September 11. It would have been completely understandable if Hayward declined playing in the Orlando bubble to stay with his wife during the tail end of her pregnancy. However, Hayward will be taking part, for at least the early parts of the Orlando bubble Whether or not the Celtics will still be playing playoff basketball when Robyn is due in September remains to be seen, but Hayward made one thing clear on Friday in a Zoom call. He will be leaving the bubble for the birth of his child at that time to be with his wife.
“It’s a pretty easy decision for me on that,” Hayward said. “I’ve been at the birth of every one of my children and I think there are more important things in life. So we’ll cross that bridge when we get there. I know the NBA has a protocol for that type of thing and hopefully, I can do the quarantining and testing the appropriate amount of time and then be back with the boys.”
Leaving the bubble in Orlando will make Hayward subject to the league’s regulations upon re-entering the bubble to play. Robyn is expected to give birth in Indiana as she will be staying with her family there prior to the birth.
“Our plan is for her to be in Indianapolis and be with family,” Hayward said. “That’s just where our family is at and it will make things easier on her.”
While players that elect to leave the Orlando bubble without permission would be subject to 10 days of quarantining and two negative tests before they are cleared to return to play, that won’t necessarily be the case for Hayward. He will get permission for departure from the NBA to leave the bubble for such a momentous family occasion. According to a league source, assuming he follows a very specific protocol in regards to travel and his personal interactions from league doctors when he is away, his quarantine period will be far less than 10 days. NBA protocol indicates Hayward would need to be in isolation for as few as four days upon returning to the bubble before being cleared to rejoin the Celtics (assuming he tests negative during quarantine during that time).
With the Conference Finals expected to take place on an every other day schedule, it’s likely Hayward would miss 2-3 games of the series at a minimum if the baby arrives in mid-late September. An arrival in early September could impact the tail end of the Eastern Conference Semifinals as well. However, the shortened quarantine window should give the Celtics a chance to compete in any series if Hayward is only missing a couple of games. A longer absence for Hayward for an entire series would have put a major damper on the C’s title chances but that doesn’t look like it will be the case here.
“I think the opportunity to compete for a championship and play for a title is something a lot of us NBA players want to do,” Hayward said. “We want to go down there and continue the season and try to finish something that we’ve worked for all year.”
Having an understanding and supportive wife is also an essential part of the equation for the 30-year-old.
“She’s sad, for sure,” Hayward said of leaving his family next week. “My wife has been unbelievable through this whole thing, seriously. She is taking care of the girls, taking care of me, ‘cause I’ve been home more and that’s something she does really well. All while being pregnant. Helping me get ready for this upcoming deal that we’re going to go through. At the same time, trying to get the girls ready to go back to Indianapolis for the baby. She’s just been amazing.
“She’s definitely sad, for sure. She’s been stressing a little bit about this and I can’t blame her for that. It’s definitely been a stressful time for us. But I think she will be happy if I go down there and play well and the Celtics play well. I know she will be. I think we’re all blessed now as we’re on this Zoom call here with the technology these days to be able to communicate with video calls and I can still talk to her every day. It won’t be the same as me begin there and doing storytime and bedtime and all that good stuff, but maybe I can do some of that remotely.”
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