I’m just as upset as you are about zero sports over (at least) the next month, but fortunately, there are a ton of great sports-related books to read in the meantime!
If you have any good recommendations for people … throw them in the comments.
ICYMI: Forget 30 days, the NBA could be considering somewhere around 90! The CDC announced yesterday that it recommends all events with over 50 people in attendance be postponed for at least two months. According to ESPN, it appears the NBA is willing to take that a step further, by suspending play until mid-to-late June.
The NBA Could Be Considering Waiting Until Mid-to-Late June to Resume Play https://t.co/hKQAPMyk6K
Adrian Wojnarowski’s reported the following: “For now, there’s a working plan that games would return without fans, and teams have been told to search out arena dates well into August for the playoffs, sources said. Teams have been directed to give the league office potential dates at smaller nearby game venues, including team practice facilities, that could spare the use of empty, cavernous arenas and possibly provide backdrops to unique television viewing lines.” So not only is the league thinking about a three-month hiatus but, upon return, the games would still welcome no fans. Games at smaller venues and practice facilities would be super bizarre (and maybe cool?), especially in the NBA Playoffs. However, as long as basketball can resume and finish out this season (other than the whole Bulls thing, this was a pretty darn good season), I’ll be happy.
Be it an April or June return, the longer the league waits to come back, the more interesting certain team’s situations become. Players should come back incredibly healthy, and I can’t help but think about a team like the Brooklyn Nets, who currently sit 7th in the East. What if when the league starts up this summer, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving are healthy? Would the team insert those two into the lineup? Could the team make a run?
(Photo by Getty Images)
On a much smaller scale, if the league plays out the rest of the regular season instead of skipping right to the playoffs, could Kris Dunn be prepared to play? A restricted free agent this offseason, the Bulls defensive anchor might want to prove his worth one last time before hitting the market. All I’m saying is, this is one major component to think about across the league.
Players are now allowed to travel outside their team’s market, which *thumbs up emoji.* However, this means extra precaution must be taken for those who are on the move. According to Shams Charania, teams are supposed to check in with their personnel on the daily.
Sources: Players who travel out of team's market during NBA season hiatus must: Provide whereabouts; remain home, do social distancing. Team permitted to pay for certain travel.
Teams also encouraged to establish daily health/basketball check-ins (such as via FaceTime, Skype). https://t.co/9uoboDoJ8L
One, for a lack of a better word, “benefit” to this league suspension is that the NBA might be able to test out a new schedule. For years, the league has been interested in creating less clash with the NFL, so this is a good point by The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor.
A mid-June return with the Finals ending in August would possibly set up the 2020-21 season to begin in December. Various members of the league office and team front offices have long been in support of that to avoid clashing with the NFL schedule. Still so hard to predict ahead. https://t.co/JujTQhjykY
I mean … duh, right? In general, this feels like a weird thing to have to discuss at the moment, but I guess the NBA (and all other major sports leagues) will need to make sure they cover all their bases. It’s better safe than sorry to have all these small rules written down and agreed upon so everyone is on the same page.
The Athletic’s Stephen Noh helps us forget the overflowing bucket of bad from this Bulls 2019-20 campaign and shares some of the season’s silver linings. There might not be a whole lot to get excited about, with no basketball at all right now, it certainly makes you appreciate a couple of things more.
Wow, Kyle Korver has now experienced two league halts while in the midst of a title race.
Talked to Kyle Korver, who played for title-contending Bulls during 2011 lockout, about what it’s like to go from 60 mph to 0 with title-contending Bucks: https://t.co/WtrXomG6v0
Speaking of Jordan, ESPN could 100 percent save all of us from this sports-less wasteland by dropping The Last Dance documentary early. While we have been given no official word on whether ESPN will shoot for an early release, they did recently change the end of their commercials to say “Coming Soon.” Take that as you will.
Elias Schuster is the Lead Chicago Bulls writer at Bleacher Nation. He started with BN full-time in 2019 immediately after graduating from the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign with a degree in Journalism (yes, he started with the Jim Boylen Era). Since joining, Elias has been the driving force behind Bulls and NBA content for both the site and social accounts. You can follow him on Twitter/X @Schuster_Elias.
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