There’s increased confidence around NBA circles that the 2019-20 season will resume within the next two months. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is expected to lay out the plan to players and teams on June 1.
Recently, Walt Disney World in Orlando has taken over as the favorite to host the season amid the ongoing pandemic. The Las Vegas Strip in Nevada has also been bandied about as a possibility.
According to Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry, it’s not an either/or proposition. Lasry told CNBC on Thursday that he expects the Eastern Conference will be played in Florida with Western Conference games taking place in Nevada.
This is interesting for a multitude of reasons.
- First off, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has joined others in indicating that some regular-season games will have to be played before the playoff starts. There’s still east-west matchups remaining on the schedule. Would the NBA change up the remainder of the regular-season schedule to take this into account?
- Secondly, this adds another layer to the playoffs. Where would the NBA Finals be played between the two sites? As noted multiple times before, the season is expected to take place in a “bubble city.” The Finals will not switch between destinations due to restricted travel amid the global pandemic.
- These two states are prime locations for the season to resume. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis just opened up the state to both the economy and professional sports. Some casinos in Nevada are slated to open at some point later this month. Nevada has already started a phased reopening, too.
There’s obviously a lot of logistics to work out between now and the resumption of the season in less than two months. But the idea of playing in both Orlando and Las Vegas makes sense.
It’s certainly something to keep an eye on in the days leading up to Silver laying out his plans to the Association.