Dyshawn Pierre’s trip home took 18 hours, but it’s not quite over yet.
It started in Sassari, Italy — a mid-sized city in the northern part of the island of Sardinia — with a two-hour drive to Olbia, the closest operating airport.
Then a quick flight to a strangely deserted Leonardo Da Vinci Airport in Rome for a flight to Frankfurt. Following a layover, it was on to Toronto on an almost-empty plane, and then, finally, back to Whitby.
“It’s good to be home,” says Pierre, who was enjoying a breakout season with Dinamo Sassari in the LGA — the top basketball league in Italy.
While Canadians have taken the NBA in record numbers this season with 21 appearing in a league game this season — the most ever by citizens of any country other than the United States — countless more ply their trade internationally and have had to deal with the fallout from COVID-19 in different ways.
There is no fixed figure for how many Canadians are playing in Europe — the next biggest basketball market outside of North America — but estimates suggest there are about 180, divided between 120 men and 60 women.
When the NBA suspended operations, Canada’s NBA talent simply headed home or stayed in the market they work in. For athletes playing all over the world, there were added layers of uncertainty from navigating travel restrictions, job status and financial implications.
Pierre stayed in Sassari for two weeks after his season was suspended as Italy was hit with the virus sooner and harder than almost anywhere.
He was worried if he left and the season wasn’t cancelled he wouldn’t be able to get back in time to play and would be leaving significant money on the table. While locked down in his apartment he thought he would send his girlfriend Brianna and three-month-old daughter, Kyra, home without him — this just a few weeks after they had arrived on Feb. 22 and began to settle in — but was anxious about the logistics of her making the trip alone.
Finally came some clarity — the suspension of the league was extended through the end of April. He could get home, quarantine and still get back to Italy and quarantine again if needed.
“I wasn’t sure what was going to happen at home but I was just hoping I could get out before they decide to close the borders,” he said.
The season has since been cancelled, which has cost Pierre about 15 per cent of his salary, but that’s a distant concern now.
He’s still not entirely home, in the full sense.
After landing in Toronto, there were no warm hugs with family or a ‘Welcome Home’ sit-down dinner. Instead, social distancing rules were in effect and it’s been quarantine in the basement for a week, with another week to go.
He did get a taste of a favourite meal: Even after playing three years in Italy, he craves Pizza Pizza when he gets to Whitby — “Hawaiian,” he says, laughing.
Pierre’s home-but-not-home experience is similar to that of London, Ont.’s Miranda Ayim. The two-time Olympian and national-team captain has spent more time alone in the bedroom of her parents’ house than she ever did as a teenager after going through her quarantine upon returning from France.
“My mom and I have a tray system and we’d wave at each other down the hall,” she says.
Ayim’s journey began in the southwest of France, where she was in the midst of her fifth season with Basket Landes, one of the top teams in LFB, the top French league.
At first she was hesitant about leaving, as the French league hadn’t given official word about whether the season was being suspended or cancelled and she was comfortable in her house.
Spring was coming to the Bordeaux region and while lockdowns were in effect, she was still able to go for runs — often right past where she would normally train — soak up some sun in the yard, visit with the neighourhood cats and otherwise keep busy.
But after a point it felt like it was time to go.
“There were rapidly dwindling flights coming back home so I thought it was time,” she said.
The trip home was eerie.
“It was dead everywhere. The train station was dead — in France you need documents stating why you are travelling, so it was very quiet. At the airport only one newsstand-type store was open, everyone was wearing masks, the airport was dead, the whole vibe is totally different. I had my own row on the plane.
“When I got to Toronto and stuff it was a bit of a shock because there was still restaurants and stuff open [at the airport]. So you could definitely see the difference in the timeline. Europe is ahead of Canada, as far as measures in place and all of that.
“When I arrived in Montreal [en route to Toronto] they informed me of the new, more strict guidelines [about self-isolation] and gave me a pamphlet with some links and stuff.”
Like Pierre, being home wasn’t quite what she’s used to.
“No hugs or anything. It’s been weird. I’m just staying in one room and bathroom,” says Ayim, whose quarantine will end just in time for Easter. “I’m not allowed in the kitchen right now. My Mom will bring me the food and back away and I’ll take the food — we’re really trying to limit contact just to be safe in these first couple of weeks.”
At least they made it back.
Dylan Ennis figured his best strategy was to sit tight in Spain, where he plays for Basket Zaragoza in the ACB, Europe’s top league.
While Spain — along with Italy and just ahead of France — has been one of Europe’s epicentres for COVID-19, life in Zaragoza has remained somewhat normal. People can leave their homes for groceries and trips to the pharmacy, and bakeries remain open if you want to grab a café con leche and a churro.
“That’s an essential service in Spain, I guess,” said Ennis, who is logging nearly unlimited family time with his wife Megan and their 11-month-old, Amiyah.
His family in Toronto — among them, Raptors 905 guard Tyler Ennis — see the headlines, where Spain has counted more deaths due to the virus than any country other than Italy and the United States, and are concerned.
“Everyone is like, ‘Dylan, Spain seems so bad’ but it doesn’t seem like that. Our streets are quiet, you can still go to the grocery store and things like that,” he said. “It really hasn’t impacted us at all, other than staying inside.”
Because the ACB remains suspended rather than cancelled, Ennis’ decision to stay was a combination of logistics and economics.
“There was a few things that went into staying. One, I have an 11-month-old daughter and packing everything up to go and then having to come back, or do we leave our stuff, go home and then the season is cancelled, then we have to figure out how to get all our stuff from Spain to Canada.
“So maybe I thought my wife and daughter go back, but them flying all the way to Canada alone would be a tough situation, so we figured we’d stay together here.
“And now Canada … is on lockdown so we’d have to quarantine when we arrived anyway and then we wouldn’t be able to see anyone because everyone is on lockdown.
“My organization said they would pay 50 per cent of our salaries if the season is cancelled, which is great, but we had two players leave and they won’t be getting that money, so staying here, being comfortable and being paid to hang out in our house isn’t so bad.”
The only problem?
“Man, I don’t know what days it is,” said Ennis, who has an active social media presence on Twitter and Instagram and writes a parenting blog. “The only kind of routine I have is a workout regimen, but other than that, I don’t know what day it is. Everything seems the same.”
Like Pierre, Ennis was having a career year with his club, helping lift the Zaragoza to third in the powerful ACB with wins over traditional powers Real Madrid and Barcelona. Earning a spot in the lucrative EuroLeague competition was within grasp.
That kind of performance usually translates into a raise or a jump to a bigger club, but everything is on hold for now.
“I love it here and they would be one of the top teams on my list,” he said. “But we’ll let everything settle and look at all my options before I make a decision.”
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For Pierre, the virus robbed him of another much anticipated pleasure — watching his University of Dayton Flyers translate what would have been a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament into a long run through March Madness. Pierre helped put the mid-major on the map as he led them to three straight tournament appearances before turning pro in 2016-17, so he felt a special connection.
“It’s sad, man. They handled everything so well all year,” said Pierre. “They did some amazing things. It’s just tough because I think they could have gone really far in the tournament, too.”
Ayim is fortunate that French labour laws are such that her salary will be guaranteed even with the season stopping, but she has had to cope with the disappointment of the Olympics being postponed. The lanky power-forward has been instrumental in the rise of the Canadian women’s team to a best-ever fourth-place ranking. They were gunning for a medal in Tokyo and now have to recalibrate.
“We had some great momentum going into this summer but who’s to say we can’t get that momentum going again?” says Ayim, who was contemplating retiring from the national team after this summer but now expects to play through 2021.
“We’re just getting stronger with each passing year, so one more year is not going to hurt us, I think. But it was definitely disappointing and an adjustment, because you have to adjust your mind frame, your schedules and plans, mentally and physically … but it’s completely the right decision.”
For now all Ayim, Pierre and Ennis can do is hold tight and wait, and in that respect, they have that in common with everyone almost everywhere, in any league.
