NBA commissioner Adam Silver told team owners he’s targeting a July 31 return to play, US media reported, although the format for completing the season remains unclear. The Los Angeles Times was among the outlets reporting Silver suggested July 31 as a potential re-start date when speaking on a conference call with the board of governors, citing unnamed sources familiar with the call.
The NBA suspended play on March 11 in response to the coronavirus pandemic and multiple scenarios for resuming and completing the season are still being considered.
One option would be to bring back all 30 teams to complete the tail end of the regular season before staging the playoffs — an idea that appears to have little support with many of those teams out of post-season contention. Also under discussion is the return of 20 teams, with competition being split into World Cup-style pool play that virtually serves as the first round of the playoffs.
Another suggestion would bring back up to 22 teams — all that were within six games of a playoff spot when play was halted. The scenario would include some regular season games and a play-in tournament for berths in the playoffs to follow.
