What’s next? NBA faces questions
The NBA’s league office, team offices and players would like to take a vacation.
The league just concluded the 2019-20 season, which lasted an additional three months in a campus bubble after the NBA suspended operations for four months because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Still, the NBA must address various questions. Here is a rundown of the key issues the league is facing.
When does the NBA draft start?
The NBA will hold a virtual draft on Nov. 18 with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Golden State Warriors and Charlotte Hornets holding the top three picks, respectively. Because the college basketball season was cut short during the pandemic, NBA teams have relied more on regular-season game footage and Zoom interviews.
When does NBA free agency start?
Usually the NBA starts free agency about a week after the NBA draft. But that start date is uncertain because the league still has to finalize the salary cap and luxury tax thresholds for the upcoming season.
Though the NBA typically does not finalize that until after the NBA draft in normal seasons, the league anticipates a significant reduction because of lost revenue during the suspended season and subsequent restart without fans. The NBA and the players union have had ongoing discussions about this issue.
Teams need to know these numbers so they know how to budget their payroll. Players need to know these numbers so they can determine their possible earning power in the open market.
“We recognize we need to be in a position to give them guidance,” Commissioner Adam Silver said. “Maybe we won’t be completed on everything that we need to work out with the Players Association, but that guidance will come. It’s going to come based on discussions we’re having with the Players Association on how to set the cap and tax.”
When does next season start?
After initially targeting Christmas as the NBA’s start date, Silver said it is “more likely January.” But that date is tentative as well, for various reasons.
One, the NBA and the players union have to determine how both parties will handle the league’s financial losses. Two, the NBA hopes to begin next season with at least a limited number of fans in home arenas. Though outside health experts expressed concern about that idea, the NBA remains open to delaying the season’s start date to minimize risk. Three, the NBA has to account for a ramp-up time before the season actually starts.
“If we start in January, it means training camps have begun roughly three weeks earlier,” Silver said. “In the longest season in the history of the NBA, many of them have continued training throughout the break. The Finals (ended) in roughly mid-October, and they need a break, physically and mentally.”