Hats off to the NBA’s players for seeking justice in an era when racial division seems to be growing rather than diminishing. If their requests are falling on deaf ears, walking out seems to be the greatest use of their leverage.

If they’re serious, they’ll refuse to return before some significant change is made–even if it means the potential cancellation of the playoffs. If so, racism may accomplish what the coronavirus couldn’t.

Speaking of COVID-19, at least some college football powers are still planning to forge ahead this fall despite the pandemic. But their efforts could be sacked by increasing spreads of the virus on cammpuses.

N.C. State, which was scheduled to open its season at Virginia Tech on Sept. 12, paused practice and postponed that game for two weeks after reporting 27 new coronavirus cases within its athletic department. That came on the heels (sorry) of nearby North Carolina canceling in-person classes following a massive outbreak than drew an evocative headline from the school newspaper, The Daily Tar Heel.

Could this be the final straw that convinces the Atlantic Coast Conference to follow the lead of the Big Ten, Pac 12 and Big 12 and call off fall football? It certainly seems the prudent thing to do.

But the ACC’s TV contracts predominantly fund not only the member schools’ football programs, but most other sports as well. Many institutions are already cutting “Olympic” sports (which used to go by the more honest name, “non-revenue”) as they face massive budget deficits and the prospect of games with no or few fans in the stands.