This is the first time since the season was suspended that Silver has set a specific timetable and targetNBAE/GETTY IMAGES
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver during Tuesday's BOG call told owners that he is "aiming for a decision in 2-to-4 weeks about whether to resume the season or cancel," according to sources cited by Shams Charania of THE ATHLETIC. This marks the first time since the season was suspended on March 11 that Silver and the NBA have "set a specific timetable and target." Owners and execs believe that a decision on "whether or not to play out the season can't be delayed into July." The NBPA in a Tuesday memo to agents reiterated that players and the league "both want to finish the 2019-20 season if it is safe." All parties involved understand the "significant financial ramifications if the season is not able to finish." Meanwhile, with the league looking at Orlando and/or Las Vegas to play the rest of the season, players and personnel would be "able to move around, but undergo testing upon re-entry." This would mean that people involved in the isolated environment "would be re-examined before any return to the remainder of the pack." Silver repeatedly told players that "it would not be a strict 'medical bubble.'" BOG members "maintained that the primary responsibility remains safety and protecting those involved in the game environment." A source said, "The biggest issue is the number of tests, and we can't take tests from those who need it" (THEATHLETIC.com, 5/13).
PROGRESS IN TESTING: In N.Y., Marc Stein reported there has been “real progress in the testing arena,” beginning with the Magic’s ability to “secure clearance last week from local health officials and the league to test asymptomatic players and staff members.” The Lakers and Clippers also are expected to “soon receive similar blessings” in L.A. This makes it “somewhat easier to imagine the NBA reaching a point in coming weeks where all 30 teams can administer tests freely without worrying about taking tests from needier segments of the public.” However, there is "no mystery" about the "forces behind the push for a conclusion" to the '19-20 season. It is a "money thing as much as anything" (N.Y. TIMES, 5/13).
MOVING TOO FAST? On Long Island, Steve Popper notes Silver "reportedly told players on Friday's conference call ... that if a positive COVID-19 test would force play to be shut down, then returning to action right now is not a path the league should pursue." That is an "important dose of reality because the contagious nature of the virus presents the risk that teams could lose a player -- or multiple players -- for a long quarantine" (NEWSDAY, 5/14). In Utah, Sarah Todd writes while momentum "seems to be growing for the NBA to find a way" to finish the year, there are "opposing views and concerns over risk factors." While the united front of star players "will carry weight in the conversations to come, there are still many who are worried about the fact that the NBA is considering resuming games before a COVID-19 vaccine is available" (DESERET NEWS, 5/14).
PLAYERS WARMING TO IDEA: In N.Y., Kristian Winfield writes for now, it "seems players are warm, if not red-hot on the idea of resuming the season" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 5/14). Celtics F and NBPA VP Jaylen Brown told CNN yesterday that he "thinks it is 'kind of understood' that if the NBA resumes its season this summer, the league would restart with the playoffs instead of trying to complete the remaining regular-season games with all 30 teams." Brown: "The playoffs is what makes the league most of its money, and I think if we all agree to come back and play in the playoffs, I think it can regenerate (the income) so that we'll be able to have a pretty solid salary cap going into next year." Brown noted that the "general sentiment around the league is that the players would like to resume the season." Brown: "Of course we want to play. We just don't want to play at the expense of other people's health, at the expense of starting things up too early, and it not being a good situation" (BOSTON GLOBE, 5/14).
