The uncertainty of whether or not the 2019-20 NBA season will resume has been growing everyday as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to rage on.
Adam Silver and the rest of the league office are following the guidelines set forth by the government, but so far there has been little progress made in determining a return date for the NBA. The original projection from owners was mid-June, but that is looking optimistic at best given the current circumstances.
The Los Angeles Lakers have great interest in getting back on the court as they were an inarguable favorite for the 2020 NBA championship and had a successful regular season run to prove it. However, the pandemic may force a vacancy in this season’s championship — an outcome no one wants to see but may be necessary.
Despite that, vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka is still hopeful for a solution being reached and that more clarity on the situation can provide answers, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN:
“I think all of us hope that we get to May and there will be more information and clearer information,” he said. “We’ll put the health of the world and our fans and our players first and foremost, but hopefully, once we get past this initial phase, where we’re all putting in these efforts to flatten the curve, if we see success there, hopefully it will get to a place where we can see more definitively what those plans might look like. But I think it’s too early to know.”
Getting the number of cases in the United States down and containing the spread of the virus is of the utmost importance for the government and remains the biggest hurdle to a potential return to the court. Social distancing has helped in certain areas, but there are still more reported cases and deaths occurring — a sign that this crisis is still far from being over.
In a conference call with President Donald Trump earlier this month, Silver expressed his belief that the NBA and sports could lead the way and jumpstart the economy once things have settled down but until then, there is nothing that can be done except continue to practice social distancing and stay home at all costs.
The Lakers have reportedly been doing their best to stay in shape during their self-quarantine, so hopefully they can pick back up sooner rather than later when or if the season does come back.
