NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said the league is likely to delay its scheduled December 1 start for the 2020-21 season in hopes of getting paying fans back to the arenas.
Although the NBA bubble environment in Lake Buena Vista, Florida was a success, Silver said the league isn’t focusing on restoring another quarantined campus for next season.
“I would say December 1, now that we’re working on this season, feels a little early,” Silver told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols ahead of the NBA Draft lottery Thursday night.
“I think our # 1 goal is to bring fans back to our arenas. … So my feeling is that by working with the players association, we could fend off even a little longer and increase the likelihood of having fans in arenas, this is what we would aim for. “
On Thursday, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the players union was preparing members for the free agency opening to be delayed from its scheduled start on October 18. The NBA draft remains scheduled for October 16.
The NBA is working with research institutes and pharmaceutical companies on testing and monitoring developments in the fight against COVID-19. Silver said about 40 percent of the $ 8 billion in league revenue, once forecast, is tied to the presence of fans in the arenas.
In addition to the vaccine hope, the League and many of its owners have been working with companies on rapid response tests that could make crowds more viable economically and safely in the months to come.
“We are looking closely at the development of antivirals,” Silver said. “There have been some really positive reports on vaccines lately.”
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