Kentucky, Auburn, Duke, Florida State and East Tennessee State were among the men's college basketball programs that were just days away from learning their starting destinations in the 2020 NCAA tournament.
Praters Hardwood Flooring was way ahead of them.
"Our first- and second-round courts were either in transit or being loaded on the trucks," owner John Prater said. "All of our NCAA tournament floors were complete, and that includes two beautiful Final Four courts. The men's Final Four court and the women's Final Four court were at our facility, and we're about the only people who have seen them.
"We put a lot of effort into these last three to four months to make all of these courts for the tournament, and it's pretty disheartening to have it all shelved, but we've actually got a lot of work going on right now, and we're very thankful for that."
Prater, who founded the Chattanooga-based company along with his wife back in 1990, produced floors that were being used at the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, North Carolina, the Big East tournament in New York City, the Big 12 tournament in Kansas City, the Southeastern Conference tournament in Nashville and at several other conference locales when the sport came to a screeching halt March 12 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
AP photo by Charlie Riedel / The Big 12 basketball tournament court manufactured by Chattanooga-based Praters Hardwood Flooring sits in a mostly empty Sprint Center on March 12 in Kansas City. The Big 12 was one of several leagues with tournaments that were canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.There were Praters Flooring representatives who experienced disappointment at each of those conference events, but Prater is quick to point out how fortunate he and his staff members are during this frustrating financial landscape that has resulted from countless business shutdowns throughout the country.
"All of the floors we made for the conference tournaments are owned by those conferences, and all of the conferences have either paid up or are in the process," Prater said. "The NCAA owns the first- and second-round courts, and we wind up selling our remaining 10 courts - the four regional courts for women, the four regional courts for men and the two Final Four courts.
"Every one of those will be sold, and most of them have been sold, but we have lost some revenue with courts we made for the McDonald's All American Game, the Powerade Jam Fest and the Jordan Classic, which have all gone away this year."
AP photo by Gerry Broome / Clemson men's basketball coach Brad Brownell, left, and his players walk on the court as the announcement is made that the ACC tournament in Greensboro, N.C., was canceled on March 12.The Jordan Classic had been scheduled for this past Friday night in Chicago before getting scratched, with the Powerade Jam Fest and the McDonald's All American Games - with the girls' selections including East Hamilton's Madison Hayes and Kamilla Cardoso and Treasure Hunt of Hamilton Heights - having been set for next week in Houston.
Though the 2019-20 men's and women's college basketball seasons were put in the rearview mirror sooner and more abruptly than expected, Praters Flooring already has its services in demand for 2020-21. That has Prater very optimistic that better days are ahead for his and other businesses.
"We do a lot of basketball-related events, so we're putting courts on aircraft carriers and outside in New York and Los Angeles," Prater said. "We do a tremendous amount of holiday tournament business - the Maui Invitational and the Jimmy V Classic - the biggest tournaments out there, we're very involved with.
"When basketball comes back, it's going to come back with a vengeance. I think the money behind sports will come back, and when happy days are here again, I think we're going to be more thankful than ever for that."
AP photo by Mary Altaffer / Madison Square Garden is shown after the remainder of the Big East Conference men's basketball tournament was canceled on March 12.According to its website, Praters Flooring has the largest portable flooring facility in the world at its 200,000-square-foot Peerless Mill site in Rossville, which has the capability to service 12 courts at once and store more than 100 courts.
Prater may actually have to perform some juggling acts should things start returning to normal in the months ahead. The NBA's Charlotte Hornets play on a Praters Flooring court, but if the NBA decides to resume and play through the summer months, Charlotte's court will need to be removed in late August in order to house the Republican National Convention.
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics will now be in 2021, but Praters Flooring also has the contract for next year's World University Games in China.
"We're still doing the Olympics, and the Olympic Committee has told us to continue," Prater said. "Instead of going out on a boat this April, I guess they'll go on a boat next April."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524. Follow him on Twitter @DavidSPaschall.