NBA Aiming To Begin 2020-21 Season By Christmas
Oct 28, 2020, 11:02 AM | Updated: 12:11 pm
(Photo by J Pat Carter/Getty Images)
(Photo by J Pat Carter/Getty Images)
The Kings could be back in action as soon as December 22nd
During the NBA season restart in Orlando over the summer, one thing seemed certain: the 2020-21 regular-season wouldn’t start until the calendar flipped to 2021.
According to multiple reports, it appears as if the league has changed its plans, with the league reportedly preparing for a December 22nd start date for regular-season play–just a matter of weeks from today.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, an agreement could be reached by this weekend to lock in the Christmas week start date:
Oct. 30 is setting up to be a key date. The NBA and NBPA agreed that day would be the deadline to complete ongoing discussions on modifications to the collective bargaining agreement for the 2020-21 season, a deadline date that requires the league or union to provide 45 days notice if either decides to terminate the CBA — a scenario that sources continue to believe is a remote possibility.
It would also mark roughly eight weeks until Christmas week. Commissioner Adam Silver has told the union that there would be at least eight weeks between an agreement and the formal start of next season.
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN in article published on 10/23/20
It would be a quick turnaround for the league, with the NBA Finals having concluded on October 11th and the Draft approaching on November 18th.
Free-agency is expected to begin after the draft, which would give teams roughly two weeks to get their rosters in order for training camp–which has been rumored to have a start date of December 1st.
Commissioner Adam Silver was hopeful that fans could return in some capacity next season, claiming that a late start to the season in the months of February or March could help with the possibility of COVID-19 rapid testing and a vaccine.
With no end in sight regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, it appears as if the league has shifted its sights on getting the season back to its regularly scheduled timespan–from the winter into the summer months.
The season ending in June like usual will become even more important in 2021, with the rescheduled 2020 Olympic games taking place next July through August in Tokyo, Japan.
If the season opens up on December 22nd, new Sacramento Kings general manager Monte McNair will have just under six weeks to get the team ready for training camp.
A lot will need to be done over a short period of time, with the draft and free-agency likely being crammed into a two-week period.
Of course, the players have a say in this matter as well.
According to Chris Haynes of Yahoo! Sports, a substantial amount of players want the season to begin on Martin Luther King Jr. Day—January 18, 2021.
This is a developing story. More information will be added as it is released.
