Only feels like yesterday we had the 2019-20 season wrap up with the Los Angeles Lakers taking home the gold, and then the question everyone had was will the 2020-21 season actual start in 2020? Well, now we have an answer!
Last Thursday (5th November 2020), the NBA Players association confirmed its representatives tentatively approved a 72 game season that will commence on December 22nd. This will mean the training camps for players to resume will take place 3 weeks prior on the 1st December.
Unfortunately, with the shorten season means the 2021 NBA All-Star Weekend will be scrapped. As for when fans would be allowed back into the stadiums to watch their teams play, this is still an ongoing question.
The league believes that a December 22 start that would include Christmas Day games on television and allows for a 72 game schedule that finishes before the summer olympics in mid-July is worth between $500million and $1 billion in short-and long term revenues to the league and players.
There are some players however now considering sitting out the start of the season from the Lakers due to the quick turnaround. These are simply rumours at the present and may in fact be not true.
Not every team was in the same position as the Lakers and Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat, though. The eight franchises that didn’t travel to the Walt Disney World Resort bubble haven’t played since March, and those that didn’t make deep postseason runs will have had a slightly more traditional offseason in terms of length.
So what are your thoughts on this? Christmas Day games are definately a must (good boxing day viewing here in Australia) but no All Star Weekend is upsetting. 72 games is close to the normal season, however more games will be played in a short timeframe.
Let us know what you think
