The NBA has entered into conversations with the Walt Disney Company about resuming the rest of its season at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Florida, the US, in late July, according to NBA spokesperson Mike Bass.
Bass said that the NBA, in conjunction with the National Basketball Players Association, is engaged in conversations with The Walt Disney Company about resuming the 2019-20 NBA season in late July at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida as a single site for an NBA campus for practices, games, and housing. Their priority goes on to be the health and safety of all involved, and they are working with government officials and public health experts on a comprehensive set of guidelines to make sure that appropriate medical protocols and protections are in place.
The NBA indefinitely suspended its season on March 11, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
It is not clear whether the NBA will play the remainder of this regular season or proceed to the playoffs directly. But the Disney’s 220-acre ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, with its 3 arenas and ample hotel accommodations, would help the league to resume while limiting outside exposures.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the NBA has a board of governors call next Friday, which is expected to provide more details for teams on the timetable and plan to proceed with the season. Teams are expecting the league to instruct them to recall players to their team’s markets around June 1.
The NBA is discussing a plan for a resumption of the 2019-2020 season that includes a two-week recall of players into team marketplaces for a period of quarantine, 1-2 weeks of individual workouts at team facilities, and a 2-3 week formal training camp, according to Wojnarowski. Barring an unforeseen turn of events, many NBA owners and executives believe commissioner Adam Silver will turn on the green light the resume to play in June – with games expected to replay sometime before the end of July, sources said.