Gov. J.B. Pritzker answers questions last Wednesday. | Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times
Basketball is among a group of winter sports that has been put “on hold” by Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Public Health.
Basketball is among a group of winter sports that has been put “on hold” by Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Public Health.
“As with sports in the fall, nothing is ‘cancelled,’ just put on hold until we’re through the thick of this pandemic,” Pritzker said in a statement.
Pritzker announced the decision at a press conference on Tuesday that appeared to blindside the Illinois High School Association, which is holding a special board meeting on Wednesday, after which it was scheduled to make an announcement on winter sports.
“We know that this virus is of most concern when people are indoors with high contact, especially in vigorous situations that bring about heavy breathing like in wrestling, hockey and basketball,” Pritzker said. “Sports played at a distance like tennis can be played and sports that can be modified to have virtual elements, like dance for example, offer more leeway in this moment and the IDPH guidance reflects that.”
Basketball practices were scheduled to start on Nov. 16 and games on Nov. 30. There is now no target date for either to begin.
“This isn’t the news anyone wants to hear,” Pritzker said. “And it is not news that I want to deliver but this virus remains dangerous and deadly to kids and parents and especially grandparents and this is the best thing we can do for the health and safety of families under the current circumstances. Life in a pandemic is hard for everyone.”
The IDPH’s new guidelines raise basketball from a medium risk sport to a higher risk sport. That means competitive games can’t be played until the state reaches Level 3 of the IDPH’s guidelines. Higher risk sports are currently at Level 1. The IDPH has not detailed how the state moves between levels and the current level hasn’t change since the guidelines were first released in late July.
Moving basketball up to the higher risk level likely puts an end to club basketball showcase events and evaluation camps like the Pangos event that was held in La Grange last weekend with players from 10 states.
The IHSA, which expected to announce the news on winter sports after its board meeting on Wednesday, rushed out a statement about a half an hour after Pritzker’s announcement.
“About 15 minutes prior to Governor Pritzker’s press conference today, we were alerted that the [IDPH] has elevated the sport of basketball from a medium risk level to a high risk level,” IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson said in a statement. “We remain considerate of the recent rise in positive COVID-19 cases in our state. However, in our meeting with IDPH on Friday, we felt that we presented multiple options that would allow for basketball to be conducted safely by IHSA schools this winter, many of which are being utilized in neighboring states who plan to play high school basketball. Despite that setback, there is some positive news, as IDPH accepted the IHSA’s mitigations related to other sports, including cheerleading and dance, allowing them to move from a medium risk level to a low risk level. We will hold our special Board of Directors meeting on October 28 as scheduled, where our board will provide direction on the other winter sports, as well as discuss the IHSA sports schedule for the remainder of the 2020-21 school year.”
A crowdsourced spreadsheet pulls back the curtain on who makes what at theaters across the country.
This past week, Theatre Communications Group (TCG) announced that its job search engine, ARTSEARCH, would not only be free of cost to all users, but would additionally require all prospective employers to list a salary range for all postings. This announcement comes on the heels of seismic changes within the theater industry aimed at dismantling inequity and financial exploitation. …Read More
As theaters and studios get back to work during COVID-19, they provide a roadmap for safe practices.
Seven months and over 223,948 lives lost. As a theater practitioner who has given her heart, soul, and emotional well-being to her craft, I think a lot about how we protect artists going forward.…Read More
Trumpeter Aquiles Navarro and drummer Tcheser Holmes begin their new duo album, Heritage of the Invisible II (International Anthem), with “Initial Meditation,” a red-hot vortex of percussion and electronics whose abrasive, hypnotizing swirls sometimes sound like a helicopter flying overhead. That powerful opening statement makes clear that these musicians—best known from unrepentantly political jazz ensemble Irreversible Entanglements—can sound just as colossal as a duo as they do with that five-piece band.…Read More
The ChicagoBears lost to the Los Angeles Rams Monday night by the score of 24-10. It was frustrating. It was ugly. It was every single negative aspect you have absorbed of bad Bears football the past 20 years balled up into one game, on national television, against a team that was dismantled one week prior.
The Chicago Bears stink. And that’s a fact. But they can improve and that’s why I’m here. These 5 easy steps are how the Chicago Bears get better. It’s how they go from a 5-2 team that the entire NFL deems as fraudulent to a potential playoff team that we treat a little better but will still probably be bounced in the wild card round. Now I know everyone reading this is going to scroll looking for the “Change at Quarterback” section. I’m sorry, but it’s not here. We get it already, Nick Foles is not good. But neither is Mitchell Trubisky and the latter had 3 years with this team to prove otherwise and didn’t. Our QB situation is terrible no matter who is in and that’s the truth of the matter.
Here’s what else needs to be fixed while I’m here.
Fire Matt Nagy into the sun. I don’t care how you do it but strap him to a rocket ship the size of his ego and launch him into orbit…as a play-caller. It’s not working. It hasn’t worked and I feel like I’m not being out of pocket here when I say that it’s insanity to watch him continue to try and scheme against defenses. Matt Nagy is a good leader. Players want to play for him and that’s all well and good. But the Bears’ offensive woes start in one place and one place only and that’s with Nagy’s lack of play-calling abilities. Before anything else, it’s time to hand over that obnoxious laminated Harry Potter novel of a play sheet and give someone else a shot.
It is simply unacceptable to continue down this path and continue to refuse to adjust as the game progresses, or failure to learn from past mistakes. Pitching the ball to Cordarrelle Patterson on a 4th and 1 is egregious. After a deep bomb to Allen Robinson early in the 4th quarter, the Bears had a chance to grab a TD, and failed to convert anything from the Rams 20. The play-calling doesn’t compliment anything else happening on the field.
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“Be You” was fun for five minutes but you suck, and when it boils down to it, it’s the reason the Bears offense wouldn’t score on the Little Giants.
A post shared by Chicago Bears (@chicagobears) on Oct 26, 2020 at 6:00pm PDT
It’s Time to Unleash Cole Kmet and Darnell Mooney
It’s 1st and 10 and you’re at your own 18-yard line after giving up an easy touchdown. A good gain on first down is necessary to answer and in order to give your defense some time to rest, so what do you do? You draw up something down the field to one of your most talented playmakers. It’s not a difficult concept and what do you know, it worked. Nick Foles connected with rookie Cole Kmet on a 38 yard gain to get the drive rolling.
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So, what happened during the rest of the game? Kmet saw one more target and it was on the same drive on a play where Foles extended outside the pocket and stuffed a rifle into Kmet nestled on the left hash. If the Chicago Bears want more success on offense they need to incorporate their talent on offense rather than continue to try and jam this outlandish idea of a game plan that doesn’t work down our throats. Demetrius Harris doesn’t work. Jimmy Graham doesn’t work between the 20’s. Anthony Miller works like a TV remote that you need to slam against your palm three times to get the batteries to work again because you’re too lazy to get up and change them out.
Without Tarik Cohen, there’s no dynamic element to the offense, but increased usage of the rookies, Kmet and Mooney, is the catalyst that allows more down-the-field offense, thus opening up Montgomery, Robinson, and others to execute and extend drives. It’s not rocket science in today’s NFL but for some reason, Matt Nagy hasn’t seemed to figure it out yet. Don’t fret though because I just did for you.
The Offensive Line
Germain Ifedi looks like a turnstile at Six Flag and Rashaad Coward moves like a small child trying to run in a pool. The Bears offensive line is without a doubt their biggest personnel issue and it showed against the Rams pass rush. Nick Foles was not good but he also had no time to throw the ball. David Montgomery wasn’t good but he had no holes to run through. The Chicago Bears offensive woes begin on the field with the offensive line. There is no sync or chemistry between them. The veterans who are supposed to be holding it down are trash too. It’s an abomination from top to bottom and the injuries to James Daniels and now Cody Whitehair are only going to make it exponentially worse.
A viable replacement is on another NFL roster right now, he’s probably not just sitting on his couch waiting for a call, so Ryan Pace is going to have to get creative in trying to bring in someone who can help right this ship but judging by Pace’s history acquiring offensive talent we probably shouldn’t hold our breath with that one.
A post shared by Chicago Bears (@chicagobears) on Oct 26, 2020 at 8:28pm PDT
Chicago Bears Not-So-Special Teams
One week after Cairo Santos miraculously won NFC Special Teams Player of the Week, Ted Ginn Jr. likely won himself NFL Special Teams Worst Player of the Year. I get that the Bears lost their All-Pro punt returner, Tarik Cohen, early this season, but Ginn isn’t it. I’d be surprised if Ginn returns more yards than his age the rest of 2020: that’s how bad it is. Last night, Rams punter Johnny Hekker looked like the greatest to ever play the game, saying screw the 20-yard line and pinning the Bears inside their own 5 on multiple occasions. Part of that is attributed to just how good Hekker is but another (very large) portion of that falls on Ted Ginn’s shoulders for refusing to field a single punt. He looked like a tee-ball player afraid to catch the ball as it flew towards him. He let everything bounce and roll, nothing was done with any sort of urgency and aggressiveness and it put the Bears offense (which already is terrible) in an even worse position.
This should be the last time Ginn is back to return punts, but then again the Bears play the Saints next week—Ginn’s old team—so Matt Nagy is probably holding on praying for a revenge game out of the 35-year-old.
Photo Credit: Derrick Rose Facebook Page
View the Best Athletes From Chicago
Chicago has a super rich history of producing elite athletes. Here’s just a handful from the Windy City that made it directly into the spotlight. Any Chicago Bears included?
The Bears traded up in a draft wherein they had very limited capital to draft running back David Montgomery. Coming out of Iowa State, Montgomery was known for being a downhill runner with good vision and the ability to break tackles. Simply put, he’s a capable short-yardage back, right? Or so we thought, as yet again the Bears’ offensive minds that be turned to Cordarrelle Patterson in a 4th and 1 situation.
This is no fault of Patterson, I want that to be known. I love Patterson as a weapon if he’s used correctly. That’s not using him correctly. And moreover, it’s a screaming indictment of David Montgomery standing with the offensive play-callers, which if you take it one deeper, is a screaming indictment of the Chicago Bears decision to draft him in the first place. Start using David Montgomery the way he’s designed to be used. At least see what happens, because Patterson in short-yardage situations isn’t going to cut it anymore.
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