Report: NBA officials fear psychological toll of activities on 'germophobes'

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NBA team officials have expressed concern that players and executives could be negatively impacted psychologically as they return to team facilities amid the coronavirus pandemic, especially those recognized as "germophobes," ESPN's Baxter Holmes reports.

Some executives believe those fears could, in turn, affect a player's on-court performance if the 2019-20 season resumes.

"Some players will have an easier time breaking through that, and other players will have a real challenge," an Eastern Conference training official told Holmes.

Despite the reported apprehensions among some team personnel, other executives believe that any individuals who hold out will reconsider if salaries start to be withheld.

"There are always going to be people, when they have the ability to put up a fight against certain things they hear about, they're going to do it," an Eastern Conference general manager said. "Then, when somebody says, 'Well listen, this is what the deal is, and if you don't do it, you don't get your paycheck,' now you find out how serious they really were."

Some players have publicly admitted to a fear of germs, including Chicago Bulls rookie guard Coby White.

"I'm the type to shake your hand, then go straight to the bathroom and wash 'em," White told NBA.com's Sam Smith in March. "We're not around each other 24/7, but from what I've seen, we wash our hands, we use hand sanitizers, and our trainers do a good job of giving us hand sanitizers and making sure we wash our hands and we're staying on top of everything."

Three of the league's 30 teams are set to reopen their facilities Friday for the first time since mid-March. However, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said Wednesday that he intends to keep the team's training center closed indefinitely due to an inability to test players for the coronavirus.