You’re right that there’s a balance that needs to be struck. Most day-to-day operations need to continue, otherwise there are vital product shortages that can have their own dangerous effects.
With that said, entertainment cancellations/postponements probably aren’t vital. Yes, there are negative economic consequences for many, and it’s very disappointing to not see March Madness this year. However, given that we don’t have a good handle on who or how many are currently infected (e.g., studies show people are contagious for 4-5 days before they are symptomatic) cancelling/postponing these entertainment events seems to be a reasonable response.
This should hit pretty close to home for the Iowa basketball team in particular - Patrick McCaffery may be particularly susceptible to this virus. He couldn’t play this year due to complications with his recovery from cancer a couple years ago, and it’s possible his immune system could be severely compromised if he were infected with coronavirus. The fact that European soccer players were infected despite playing in front of empty stadiums, and that NBA players tested positive even without being symptomatic, makes the decision to not play (even without fans) seem reasonable.
There’s certainly plenty to debate. For example, I think they should have postponed the NCAA Tournament rather than cancel. We continue to learn a lot about this virus as time goes on, and we should know a lot more in another month. Perhaps we could develop a way to test the players involved to confirm they are healthy enough to compete and then it would be feasible to have the tournament in April or May.