Adam Silver: Everything Is On the Table For NBA Return
NBA commissioner Adam Silver held a press conference on Friday in which he declared that everything was on the table for the league and its return. He did say there was "no compromise" for the well being of the players. From the content of the call it sounds like the league is hoping to return but also preparing for the potential of canceling the rest of the season.
ESPN's Marc J. Spears had a summary of the call on his Twitter timeline, and the biggest takeaway is that there are a wide range of potential outcomes. Silver said every option is being considered, even some "bubble-like concepts." We assume that means something like the Las Vegas plan of having all the teams in one city and locked in hotels, etc. The league is apparently also considering pushing back the start to next season to accommodate the finish to the current season and give players an adequate break afterwards.
Adam Silver: "Everything is on the table, including potentially delaying the start of next season." Adds "the direction the league has received from teams is that all rules are off" in terms of schedule, "and if there is an opportunity to resume play, we should be modeling it."
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) April 17, 2020
Silver also said there is "too much unknown" to consider returning. He was adamant that testing must be available on a large scale and new infections had to decrease before the NBA began to consider a return to play. Unfortunately, we're nowhere near that point.
Adam Silver: “As I sit here today, there’s too much unknown to set a timeline and even too much unknown to say, ‘Here are the variables.’” He does know that number of new infections must decrease and testing must be available on a large scale for NBA to consider return to play.
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) April 17, 2020
While there is a silver lining that the league is still willing to come back if it's possible, the fact is we're nowhere near that happening. Silver is right, bringing the league back without widespread testing available would be foolish and reckless. But, the league does feel an "obligation" to restart the season when it's safe:
Adam Silver: "Part of our discussions were about the team financials. Our revenue in essence has dropped to zero." Notes that the NBA is responsible for 55,000 jobs including game-day workers, and stresses yet again that the league feels an "obligation" to restart when it's safe.
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) April 17, 2020
While Silver's call was informative, we're basically exactly where we thought we were. The NBA is not close to returning and won't do so until it can guarantee the safety of its players.