Thunder's Donovan doubts NBA restarts if it puts country in danger

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Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan believes commissioner Adam Silver won't risk the health of players or the nation in an attempt to finish the 2019-20 NBA campaign.

"I don't know what’s going to happen, I think we're all waiting to get some direction," he told Forbes' Adam Zagoria. "Obviously, I think the NBA is trying to do everything they can do to try to figure out a way to play, but I don't think they're going to try to do it if it's going to put players or the country in danger and I'm sure we're going to get direction for that."

On Saturday, Silver participated in a conference call with President Donald Trump along with a number of top executives from several professional sports leagues.

Silver reportedly told Trump that after being some of the first U.S. businesses to shut down amid the pandemic, the leagues want to lead the economic restart, but only when the "all clear" is given from public health officials.

The White House ensured the conversation was off the record, according to Jenna Fryer of The Associated Press. However, Trump said later during his afternoon coronavirus briefing that he wants all sports to resume as soon as possible.

"They want to get back. They gotta get back. They can't do this," he said, according to Aaron Rupar of Vox. "Their sports weren't designed for it. The whole concept of our nation wasn't designed for it. We're gonna have to get back. We wanna get back soon. Very soon."

Trump also reportedly said during the call that he believes the NFL's 2020 season, which remains scheduled to begin in September, should still start on time. The president reportedly said he wants to see fans return to arenas and stadiums in August and September, too. But medical experts haven't confirmed if that's currently possible.