Fred VanVleet isn’t confident NBA season will resume, is worried more about health & safety than payday

Toronto Raptors guard Fred VanVleet was in the midst of a career season, and is one of the main reasons why the team has all but secured themselves second place in the Eastern Conference with a 46-18 record. But then COVID-19 happened, and that changed the entire landscape of not only the NBA, but the world we live in.

Prior to the league pause, the 26-year old was averaging 17.6 points, 6.6 assists and 3.8 rebounds (all of which are career-highs). To put those numbers into perspective, he is doing this during the final season of his current contract, which in all likelihood would’ve set him up for a big payday this summer.

So you got to think this coronavirus pandemic has gotten to him on a personal level, it not only impacted his team’s chances as repeating as champions but it might also affect the amount of money he could get in the open market. He admits that it is in the back of his mind, but is definitely more concerned about the well-being of his family and the people that are being impacted worldwide.

“I’m not one of those guys that tries to like give a vanilla answer. Yeah, I think about (free agency)…I’m human. I felt like I worked myself into a good position, I was having a helluva year and I was planning on having a great playoffs to cap that off.” said VanVleet.

“People’s health and well being and frame of mind is a lot more important than a couple million here or there, because we’re all filthy rich compared to what we came from in the first place, so I don’t think anybody’s crying over it” 

As for when the season will continue, the Raptors guard certainly has his doubts. While the rest of the basketball world remains optimistic, he struggles to see how everything will be safe enough or organized in a way that will allow the league to confidently resume in the summer.

“If we’re saying the timeline matters, we’re saying all these certain things and you’re looking around the world at what’s going on with the virus itself, if our league is going to be a leader in terms of public health and player safety, you’ve gotta follow the guidelines of what the virus is speaking to you…So the odds are probably against us in terms of that.” added VanVleet.

The league is in discussions to possibly start up in July, and play in neutral sites to prevent the spread of COVID-19.