Adam Silver and the NBA have been working very hard over the last couple of months to get a return-to-action plan in place. Unfortunately for the league and its players, things haven't been going very smoothly. Next month, the league is planning on going to Orlando where they will take part in the whole bubble city concept. The big issue with this is that Florida is seeing a massive spike in Coronavirus cases. This ultimately means the players could be at a much bigger risk.
According to Baxter Holmes and Zach Lowe of ESPN, Silver has been having important conversations with NBA executives about this reality. For now, it seems like Silver is accepting of this reality and remains confident that the season can still be played.
Craig Barritt/Getty Images for TIME 100 Health Summit
Per ESPN:
"In at least one recent call with high-level team executives, NBA commissioner Adam Silver has acknowledged the spiking numbers in Florida. Multiple team sources described the general tone of that call, including the questions asked of Silver on it, as tense. [...] Another called Silver’s tone “resolute but somber.” He expressed a resolve to go on — a confidence in the NBA’s bubble concept — while recognizing the seriousness of the coronavirus spike, sources said."
This is proving to be bad news for the NBA as they will have to act quickly if they want the season to start in July. At this point, there is a good chance they might have to move locations, otherwise, the players may just refuse to go.
[Via]