The NBA knew a bubble would be the only way for the league to resume the 2019-’20 season amid the COVID-19 pandemic. With more than $150 million invested into the Orlando bubble, the NBA’s plan just cleared the final hurdle for the season to return.
The day before the season is set to resume at ESPN’s World Wide of Sports Complex, the NBA announced zero new positive tests for the coronavirus on Wednesday.
NBA announces zero positive COVID-19 tests before season returns
For the second consecutive week, the NBA reported zero new cases of COVID-19 inside its Orlando bubble. With 22 teams and 344 players prepared to take the court in the next 48 hours, there are no new cases of the coronavirus.
It’s tremendous news for the entire basketball world as the clock ticks down until tip-off for the Utah Jazz-New Orleans Pelicans game on Thursday. It will mark the first contest of a double-header, followed by the Los Angeles Clippers facing the Los Angeles Lakers, in the NBA’s long-awaited return.
With the scrimmage schedule now behind it and players adjusting to life in quarantine, everything is in place for the season to resume.
Each team will play an eight-game schedule to determine playoff seeding, before a potential play-in tournament could determine who gets the final playoff spots.
If the seeding games go well and the league continues to have zero new cases of COVID-19, the first round of the NBA Playoffs will begin on Aug. 17.