If the NBA is unable to play its postseason this year, the national television revenue the league loses as a result would amount to approximately $900MM, a source tells Sam Amick of The Athletic. That estimate doesn’t account for the regional sports network revenue that could be lost if teams don’t play at least 70 regular season games in 2019/20.
As the NBA attempts to find a way to resume its season, those financial concerns are one of the many factors the league is weighing, writes Amick. Losing nearly a billion dollars in national TV revenue for the playoffs wouldn’t just have an impact on players’ and owners’ wallets this year — it would have a ripple effect on future seasons, likely forcing the league and the players’ union to renegotiate aspects of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and reevaluate the salary cap.
Here are some more of the issues the NBA is attempting to sort through as it considers possible plans, per Amick:
- There was concern within the NBA’s league office when Las Vegas mayor Carolyn Goodman appeared on CNN last month, pushing to reopen the city and use its residents as test cases. However, Amick says the “sting of that segment” has subsided and that there’s still a very real possibility that Vegas will play a role in hosting the resumption of the NBA season.
- A source with knowledge of the discussions tells Amick that the NBA’s early conversations involved the possibility of a four- or five-week period for training camps before the season resumes. However, as of late, those estimates have been adjusted to two or three weeks.
- No decisions have been made yet on whether all 30 teams would play if the season resumes. Still, sources tell The Athletic that – on a Wednesday call with GMs – commissioner Adam Silver encouraged teams out of postseason contention to “take a holistic view on the matter and remain willing to assist for the greater good.” Amick suggests that’s a clue that the league would still like to involve all 30 teams.
- No NBA player who has contracted COVID-19 so far has required hospitalization, and all have fully recovered, reports Amick. Given the strong likelihood that more players will test positive though, Silver remains focused on figuring out the medical aspect of a potential return. “It’s all based on medical,” one source told The Athletic.
The mayor of Vegas is a nutjob. That segment shouldn’t be forgotten so easily
Using Vegas is a fiasco waiting to happen… indeed they advertise that as an asset!
So if anything can be restarted, you’ll be looking at close to three months since the athletes have played, yet they want to rush these guys through an abbreviated training period?
Doesn’t seem like a very good idea.
It’s an uglyball factor but it won’t kill anyone.
They may want to consider a 30-secondshot clock to avoid bad possessions.
That seems reasonable. I’d be worried about muscle pulls and the likes, especially for playoff teams who would have more reason to work hard.