For those on the outside looking in, the NBA bubble in Orlando back in 2020 looked like a resort. To Kyle Kuzma back when he was on the Los Angeles Lakers, that doesn’t seem to be the case. According to a recent interview he did on the “No Chill” podcast via Fadeaway World, Kuzma likened the experience to somewhat of a “prison”:
“It was hard just being there. Being in the bubble, that’s not our lifestyle. We like to be extremely comfortable when we’re not on the court. We wanna be home, chillin’ in your house, in a nice sofa, watching a movie. You don’t want to be in Mickey Mouse’s house, in 300 square feet for three months,” Kuzma said.
“We like to call it prison for athletes. That’s what it was. We couldn’t leave, nothing. It’s kind of like the movie ‘Get Out’ or something. You just do the same thing every single day. That was like walking the same hall every day, passing by Jimmy Butler every day, passing by somebody else.”
Whether the comments are made in jest or not, it certainly seem that there’s a strong level of entitlement that some NBA players gain after getting used to living the lavish lifestyle that the league can offer.
There are still some reasonable arguments to be made for life in the bubble being difficult. Players didn’t get to see their families while the threat of COVID-19 loomed large, and their lives were entirely predicated on working out and playing basketball. But, Kuzma doesn’t really cite any of these concerns – likening his hotel room and chicken sandwich menus to a prison space for professional athletes. Weird.
Still, at least Kyle Kuzma still speaks from the heart, and is not afraid to let the public know what he thinks, even if it’s a bit disconnected from the realities of the vast majority of Americans. Now that he’s a Washington Wizard, fans will at least get to know what’s on his mind.
