The NBA and commissioner Adam Silver continue to have discussions on potentially resuming and finishing out the 2019-20 regular season. Players are already beginning to see salary reductions because of the stoppage, but Silver and the league have been working closely with the union in order to come up with a resolution.
For the league there are a lot of factors at play when figuring out how to best go about resuming play come back. Of course, there is the question of location, which for now appears to be Walt Disney World.
There is also the matter of whether the league should simply return and go straight into the playoffs or finish out some sort of regular season, not to mention how this will all affect the offseason and eventually the 2020-21 campaign as well.
But the most important thing that Silver has consistently stressed is the safety of the players and staff. The league and Silver is committed to not helping in the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) and as Sam Amick of The Athletic reports, it is a thin line to balance for Silver and the league:
It’s a delicate balancing act for Silver, this unenviable task of planning for a possible end to the season while showing the proper sensitivity for this situation that is so much bigger than basketball. Sources say this difficult dynamic has been top of mind for all of the league’s top officials throughout the process.
Regardless of everything else at play for the NBA and the millions of dollars that are being lost at this time, the commissioner is still basing everything on the medical part of this quandry:
Meanwhile, sources say Silver’s focus remains fixated on the medical component of this quandary. “It’s all based on medical,” one source with knowledge of Silver’s thinking said.
It says a lot about Silver that despite all of the money being lost by the league and its teams, his top priority remains medical and that is what will control his decisions in the league returning.
He wants to be sure that the league will have proper protocol in place in the instance that someone contracts COVID-19 upon return as opposed to being caught off guard and everything being shut down once again.
Furthermore, Silver has also relayed he wants to ensure players are comfortable in what’s to be a bubble scenario. Rather than have them restricted to hotel rooms, Silver is hoping the NBA can establish a campus-like atmosphere that is still safe for all involved.
