While there is still a concern about how it will get done, the NBA looks poised to get a season going by as soon as July. The NHL just announced this week their plan for a season that goes directly into playoffs, and many expect a similar tactic from basketball. Let’s dive into the news from around the league this week!
Top News This Week
- Teams have started to open the doors of their practice facilities for voluntary, socially distanced workouts and rehab. While 23 NBA teams have officially opened their facilities, there are still 7 that have not.
- One of the major obstacles to overcome before allowing basketball to come back was getting players and coaches from outside of the U.S back. There was a temporary hold by the government that made it impossible for those who left the country to return, but that has been lifted as of Wednesday. The listing of the travel ban into the United States clears the runway to get the proverbial ball rolling sooner rather than later.
- Current projections for games have the league slated to start up by July or August. The NBA is currently still working on health and safety protocols to make this possible, and camps should be able to kick off in Orlando by June.
- The NBA Player’s Association is doing team-by-team phone calls with players detailing talks on the NBA making a return, and situations being thrown out.
Social News
In other basketball news from around the world, the German Basketball league will hold a three-week tournament starting in June to complete their season. Ten of the seventeen teams in the league have agreed to play.
German basketball's Bundesliga will hold a three-week tournament June 6-28 to finish its season … with 10 of 17 teams agreeing to play
But Bayern Munich announced today that Greg Monroe, the league's most prominent former NBAer, will remain in the USA due to a family illness
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) May 25, 2020
SportsCenter dropped this pretty ridiculous Shaq fact on us earlier this week. Diesel was around for a looooooong time, even after he retired.
There have been 36 straight NBA Finals with at least one player who played with @SHAQ during his career.
The last time it didn't happen was 1984 🤯 #SCFacts pic.twitter.com/P1MuH116tu
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 27, 2020
SportsCenter also hit us with the epic highlights of the final game for the late great Kobe Bryant. Truly a night to remember for any basketball fan.
60 Pts. 22-50 FG. An epic final game from Kobe 🐍
The 2016 classic is re-airing on ESPN at 9:30 PM ET. pic.twitter.com/R7iN0qDFGd
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 27, 2020
And finally, we’re just going to leave you with this hilarious highlight of Kevin Hart’s time playing basketball in high school. It’s no wonder why he never considered going pro.
“I think I got eight turnovers right now.”⠀
⠀@KevinHart4real reacting to his HS basketball highlights is too much 😂 pic.twitter.com/glbb6s8Jn9— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 27, 2020
All of that news and more, this week in the NBA! Check back weekly with GMS Sports for the most up-to-date information on your favorite sports.
