“[Albert] Hall has since applied his copious energies and logistical know-how to The Basketball Tournament, the popular, open-application, single-elimination playoff that’s currently running on ESPN. Teams are vying for the annual million-dollar prize, despite the coronavirus complicating matters for all. Hall inked a deal to handle marketing and production for TBT before the pandemic hit and never really felt like the tourney would be feasible until “the first tipoff” on July 4. Beyond providing some excitement for sports-starved fans, TBT also serves as something of a testing ground out of its bubble campus in Columbus, Ohio. Leagues, especially leagues that rely on indoor play, are watching intently, seeing what works and whether success is even possible.

I called Hall to ask what the NBA might learn as it prepares for its own bubble tournament. He obliged, between yet another temperature check. “I think I passed my sixth test today,” he said, though time is getting harder to track. Hall is truly in a bubble of his own making and will be until the championship on July 14. “Once you’re inside this thing, you can’t go out,” he said of the surreal circumstance. “As much as people say, ‘Oh, you can come and go and there will be some flexibility, blah blah.’ But there really can’t. Once you’re in, you’ve got to follow all the protocols.”