A proposal for the NBA's return to play will be voted on by the NBA BOG ThursdayNBAE/GETTY IMAGES
The NBA shared a timeline with teams that shows Oct. 12 as a "last possible date for a Finals Game 7," as the league "models a 22-team format for the season's proposed resumption" beginning July 31 in Orlando, according to sources cited by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com. Sources said that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is "expected to have a proposal to take to a vote" of the NBA BOG tomorrow. Sources also said that the "expectation is that the NBA draft and the opening of free agency would follow in sequential order in October" (ESPN.com, 6/2).
GETTING AN ADVANTAGE? ESPN.com's Dave McMenamin reports several of the teams "considered to be title favorites are internally discussing how to retain some semblance of the home-court advantage they fought to earn through 60-plus games in the regular season." Sources said that some of the scenarios discussed include the higher-seeded team being "awarded the first possession of the second, third and fourth quarters, following the traditional jump ball to begin the game." Another one was the higher-seeded team being "allowed to designate one player to be able to be whistled for seven fouls instead of six before fouling out" (ESPN.com, 6/3).
MAKING THEIR CASE: There is a lot of last-minute lobbying by non-playoff teams pushing to be included in the league's proposed 22-team restart plan. A source said, "To have eight teams sit out when there is so much relevancy. As a non-playoff team, we want to play for a multitude of reasons for our region, our community and the halo effect of the business. ... If we don't come back until the end of December, you are talking about nine months of nothing." Another source said, "I don't know if it's too late, but Adam (Silver) is listening to everyone. Adam's leadership has been impeccable and we want to play, but we are all partners" (John Lombardo, SBJ Unpacks).
CAUTIOUS APPROACH: YAHOO FINANCE's Daniel Roberts noted Clippers Owner Steve Ballmer believes it "will be a very long time before fans are in arenas." Ballmer said, "I can't see anybody agreeing to reopen arenas or concert venues in the foreseeable future. I have to say that things will be fan-less, which, who knows what kind of experience that will be to watch on TV, and for the players." He added, "The league, on behalf of the owners, will make the final decision. ... It's really our league office that's figuring these things through. And some of that is with full transparency (for) owners, some of it can't be, because it is complicated and needs to be done with some privacy" (FINANCE.YAHOO.com, 6/2).
