The NBA is in discussions with The Walt Disney Company to resume the season in the latter part of July. According to NBA spokesman Mike Bass, the games would all take place at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida.
“The NBA, in conjunction with the National Basketball Players Association, is engaged in exploratory conversations with The Walt Disney Company about restarting the 2019-20 NBA season in late July at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Florida as a single site for an NBA campus for games, practices and housing,” Bass said.
“Our priority continues to be the health and safety of all involved, and we are working with public health experts and government officials on a comprehensive set of guidelines to ensure that appropriate medical protocols and protections are in place.”
New Jersey NBA betting sites and basketball fans have been waiting for the resumption of play since the season was indefinitely suspended on March 11 due to the COVID 19 pandemic. Although talks are happening, the league is yet to rule out the possibility of terminating the season. Recently, the top two basketball competitions in Europe – the EuroLeague and EuroCup – were both canceled.
What will the rebooted NBA season look like?
It is not clear what the NBA season will look like if it does resume, as it is not yet known if it would go straight to the playoffs or conclude the rest of the regular season.
The ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex is 220 acres with three arenas and plenty of accommodation. The games would be played without fans and in one area, limiting outside exposure for the players, coaches, and league officials.
Adrian Wojnarowski from ESPN recently reported that there is a conference call scheduled for the NBA’s board of governors on Friday, May 29. They are to discuss the details of the resumption of play, including a timetable for the potential restart.
Teams are under the expectation that the league will tell them to begin recalling players to their respective markets around the first of next month. The players would be quarantined for two weeks from June 1 and would be able to practice. Wojnarowski reported that after that there would be a two- to three-week training camp. However, it remains to be seen if that will be for all of the teams or for the 16 that would qualify for the playoffs.
Team owners, executives, and officials from the National Basketball Players Association are under the belief that the season will get the green light to resume play from NBA commissioner Adam Silver. According to various sources, it is expected that the games will start up again before the end of July.
Straight to the NBA Playoffs?
Below are the top eight seeds in each conference when the season was suspended. If the campaign resumes and heads straight to the postseason, this is how the 2020 NBA Playoffs will look.
Eastern Conference
1. Milwaukee Bucks
2. Toronto Raptors
3. Boston Celtics
4. Miami Heat
5. Indiana Pacers
6. Philadelphia 76ers
7. Brooklyn Nets
8. Orlando Magic
Western Conference
1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Los Angeles Clippers
3. Denver Nuggets
4. Utah Jazz
5. Oklahoma City Thunder
6. Houston Rockets
7. Dallas Mavericks
8. Memphis Grizzlies
If the NBA decides to play out the rest of the regular season, about 17 games remain. Even if that happened, the top eight from of each conference would likely still make the playoffs.
In the Eastern Conference, the eighth-seed Magic have a 5.5-game lead over the Washington Wizards. In the Western Conference, the eighth-seed Grizzlies have a 3.5-game lead over the Portland Trail Blazers, New Orleans Pelicans, and Sacramento Kings.
Most New Jersey sportsbooks have a futures market on which team will win the 2019-20 NBA Championship title. FanDuel New Jersey have the Bucks as the team to beat at +240, followed by the Lakers (+270), Clippers (+340), Rockets (+1200), Celtics (+2000), and defending champion Raptors (+2400).