NBPA Representatives Approve 22-Team Format to Complete 2019-20 Season

On Friday, the National Basketball Players Association approved the league's 22-team format to finish the 2019-20 season, the union said in a statement. The announcement comes one day after the NBA's owners also voted to approve the league's continuation format.

"The Board of Player Representatives of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) has approved further negotiations with the NBA on a 22-team return to play scenario to restart the 2019-20 NBA season," the statement said. "Various details remain to be negotiated and the acceptance of the scenario would still require that all parties reach agreement on all issues relevant to resuming play."

In the next week, the NBA and NBPA will hash out various details about how the season will resume at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, though the two sides are in agreement to move forward with a July 31 start date.

The league standings will be decided based on winning percentage, ESPN's Tim Bontemps reported Saturday. Ties will be broken using the league's usual tie-breaking procedures. The 22 teams heading to Orlando have played various numbers of games, from 63 to 67, though all will play eight games to conclude the regular season and determine the seeding for the playoffs.

Schedules for each of the 22 teams have not yet been determined.

Wojnarowski reports that the plan is for 1,600 people to be allowed in the Orlando bubble at any given time. A small number of family members would be permitted to join players after the first round of the playoffs.

In addition, the two sides will discuss how resuming this season will impact the start date for the 2020-21 season, and any other changes to the league calendar. The 2021 Tokyo Olympics are scheduled to take place from July 23 to Aug. 8.