THAT QUARANTINE LIFE

AS THE WORLD SHUT DOWN IN MARCH DUE TO THE CORONAVIRUS, EVERYONE HAD MORE FREE TIME THAN WE KNEW WHAT TO DO WITH. CHECK OUT WHAT YOUR FAVORITE PLAYERS WERE UP TO DURING THEIR HIATUS.

-  ALEX SQUADRON

“I REMEMBER MY mom always used to tell me, Son, learn how to cook. I’m not going to be there [to do it] for you for the rest of your life,” says Celtics big man Enes Kanter, laughing.

Life for an NBA player can obviously be hectic. The traveling is strenuous and exhausting. Meals are often had on-the-go, in hotel rooms, on planes or at arenas. Time is tight and convenience is everything. Learning how to cook just isn't at the top of the priorities list.

But then, in mid-March, everything changed. As the coronavirus spread rapidly around the world and players began testing positive, the NBA shut down.

Time stood still. Four months passed.

Now, as the League is set to restart in Orlando, fans and media alike are refreshing their brains on where we left things off in the 2019-20 season.

But before we get to that and attention turns back to whatever happens inside the Disney World bubble, there’s another question worth asking: What have players been up to? For many, this is the longest they’ve gone without competitive basketball since early childhood. How did they fill that void?

Well, Kanter finally got the chance to make his mom proud. His first cracks at cooking admittedly ended with him hunched over a bowl of cereal. But he persisted, determined to master the art while he was stuck at home.

“I started making steaks, chicken wings, cookies, all that stuff—I was really trying to perfect my cuisines,” he tells SLAM. “I improved so much. Now if you put me in a kitchen and give me a recipe, I can cook it easy.”