The NBA games could be played again beginning on July 31, which is in line with the earlier indications from league officials that details for the season restart are being studied and a decision will be announced in June. One thing that the board of governors wants to determine prior to the resumption is the play format.
Reports that came out earlier suggested the NBA intends to complete the regular season and that would mean all teams will be called back to action and play the remaining games, seen to be reduced to just 72 matches.
However, given the delays that already disrupted the season, which was halted in mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic, the league could be forced to shorten the campaign. In such a scenario, only 16 teams will return, to be picked in terms of the win-loss record before the season suspension, and they will be seeded for the playoffs showdown.
According to NBC Sports, NBA commissioner Adam Silver sent out the information to the board that the league could be playing again and the earliest target date would be the end of July. The report picked up on the information shared by Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Charania also noted that the NBA will return with focus on the safety of all players and personnel, and this has been emphasized due to a reminder from Michael Jordan, who owns the Charlotte Hornets, that the season restart must not be forced into meaningless games.
In consideration of this, it is more likely that the league will write off the remaining games of the regular season and go straight to the postseason matches.
In the new format that will apply, Milwaukee will be seeded as the No. 1 team for holding the best record before the games were stopped and the team will be facing off with Orlando. Essentially, the proposed scenario will scrap the east and west divide, and according to Clutch Points, this and for other reasons could lead to complaints.
It is clear, however, that the NBA has limited options now given the restrictions imposed by the nationwide lockdown rules and the potential of contracting COVID-19 when the games are played anew.
Because of this, Silver has already stated that there will be bad options to deal with when the season restarts but since the majority of NBA stakeholders have expressed willingness to finish what was started, the league will press on despite the difficulties.
To be clear, the July 31 target date to return remains tentative. As mentioned, Silver will sound off the final decision in the next few weeks. The commissioner has warned of the risk but this will also be pitted against the projected losses to the league if the season is canceled eventually.
