Report: NBA Not Expected to Decide on Return Format this Week
There's plenty of momentum toward a return to play in the NBA, and it seems that the league is in the last stages of finalizing a plan. That said, fans shouldn't expect an announcement just yet.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the NBA's Board of Governors will meet with Adam Silver on Friday, but there's no indication that the group will decide on a plan during the session. Woj also added that the "three most serious plans" are still being discussed among the National Basketball Player's Association and the league's teams.
The expectation is that the league will resume play at some point in July at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. What's unknown, though, is how an NBA champion will be decided.
According to The Athletic's Shams Charania, several formats are being tossed around by the league's general managers — some of which would look very different than the current playoff system.
Among them is an option to expand the playoffs to include a group stage that would replace the first round. If that scenario is chosen, the next step would be deciding how many teams are involved, which could range from 18 to 24.
Of course, there are also decisions to be made regarding the regular season. Some teams still had 20+ games left on the schedule when play came to a halt, which could have been very valuable for those looking to improve positioning or make a push for the playoffs. If the league decides to continue from where it left off in March, the next step would be figuring out how many games each team should play.
There's a lot to discuss, and getting a majority of the league's teams to come to a decision won't be easy. But the NBA appears set on playing basketball this summer, so fans should expect an announcement of some sort in the foreseeable future.
