NBA News: LeBron James derides the possibility of games without fans amid Coronavirus fears; says "he won't play"

When the NBA instructed teams to be prepared to play in arenas housing no fans at all as a precautionary measure to the recent outbreak of Coronavirus in the USA, it was not received well.

One such glaring reaction came from LeBron James who blatantly admitted that he wouldn't suit up if there are no fans present. This is what ames had to say on the matter,

“We play games without the fans? Nah. Impossible. I ain’t playing if you don’t have the fans in the crowd. That’s who I play for. I play for my teammates, I play for the fans. That’s what it’s all about. So, if I show up to the arena and there ain’t no fans in there? I ain’t playing. So, they can do what they want to do.”

Coronavirus - also known as COVID-19 - has affected 100,000 people worldwide and caused at least 3,400 deaths. So far, there have been 300 known cases in the United States of America, with 69 in California (resulting in 14 deaths).

LeBron's unequivocal response to this decision is shared by a lot of players leaguewide, who play for the fans and would be heartbroken to witness an empty arena when they take the court.

LeBron James on possibility of NBA playing games behind closed doors because of coronavirus. LeBron: “I ain’t playing” if there are no fans pic.twitter.com/kpHg6bsFYO

— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) March 7, 2020

The NBA has already sent out a memo asking players to switch to fist-bumps from high-fives and also to avoid using pens, markers and jerseys from the crowd for autographs. While the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) has cancelled their season already, the NBA is yet to take any such drastic measures.