NBPA Approves December 22 Start For 2020/21 Season
The National Basketball Players Association board of representatives voted on Thursday night in a favor of an NBA proposal to start the 2020/21 regular season on December 22 and play a 72-game schedule, according to reports from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Shams Charania of The Athletic.
A number of players had been advocating for a later opening night, given how long the 2019/20 season ran, and January 18 was the other start date being considered. However, the NBA estimated that a pre-Christmas start would save up to $500MM and $1 billion in revenue, and a mid-January start would have resulted in a shorter season (around 60 games). As a result, the players ultimately came around on the league’s plan.
The result of the NBPA’s vote doesn’t make the December 22 start date official. As the union indicated in a statement confirming the news, there are still additional financial and logistical details to be negotiated. However, both sides are confident that agreements can be reached on those issues.
As Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press writes, determining what portion of player salaries will be placed into escrow is one important issue the NBA and NBPA need to resolve. According to Charania, the two sides are discussing an escrow in the 17-18% range for player salaries over the next two years, in the hopes that that amount can be reduced to the usual 10% by 2022/23. That would help cushion the blow of the lost revenues for players, spreading the hit over multiple seasons rather than having them bear the brunt of it in ’20/21.
Negotiations between the NBA and NBPA on that subject and other financial issues are expected to extend into next week, sources tell Wojnarowski. Once the two sides reach a formal agreement, the league can lift its moratorium on transactions, allowing teams to conduct trades and other roster moves before the November 18 draft. The transaction freeze is expected to end by November 16, per Charania.
The league and the union hope to open free agency as quickly as possible after the draft, since there will be a very short window before teams have to open training camps on December 1, says Wojnarowski. The start date for free agency still isn’t official, but seems likely to fall within two or three days of the draft.
The salary cap for the 2020/21 season is expected to remain unchanged, with the NBA and NBPA artificially setting at $109.141MM despite projected revenue losses. The league and the union are discussing the possibility of agreeing to have the cap increase by 2% annually for the remainder of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement, per Charania (Twitter link). That would mean a cap of $111.324MM for the ’21/22 campaign.
Meanwhile, the league and the union will also have to agree to a set of safety and health protocols as they look to play the 2020/21 season in teams’ respective home arenas rather than in a single-site bubble, even as the number of coronavirus cases around the U.S. continues to rise. Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook were among the players who said on Thursday’s call that they want to view the official health and safety measures before fully committing to the season, sources tell Charania.
According to a Thursday report, there’s hope that – at least in some markets – fans will be able to attend games in person with limited capacities and strict safety regulations in place. If that’s possible, it would help offset some of the league’s projected revenue losses.
The NBA will have to decide soon where the Raptors will be playing in ’20/21, since there are still significant restrictions in place on cross-border travel between the U.S. and Canada. Newark has been one of several cities discussed as a possibility.
While the league hasn’t yet finalized a schedule for 2020/21, Charania previously reported that the expectation is the season will run from December 22 through mid-May, with the NBA Finals finishing around July 22, just in time for the start of the Tokyo Olympics.
The league is expected to reduce teams’ travel by 25% and there will likely be a six-day All-Star break in early March, though it’s not clear if an All-Star Game will actually be played. The NBA is also hoping to conduct a play-in tournament for the final two seeds in each conference.
And-Ones: Morris Twins, Expansion, J. Grant, Hampton
Almost exactly a year ago, the Morris twins – Marcus Morris and Markieff Morris – changed agencies, signing with Roc Nation Sports for representation. However, with the two veteran forwards on the verge of free agency, Roc Nation won’t be the agency repping them this fall.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter), the Morris twins have signed with agent Chafie Fields of Wasserman for representation. Fields is one of a small handful of agents who represents both NFL and NBA clients.
It’s not necessarily the best offseason to be reaching free agency, as few teams around the NBA will have cap room available, but the Morris twins should do pretty well on the open market. Marcus is coming off a productive season with the Knicks and Clippers, while Markieff played a role in helping the Lakers win a title last month.
Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- One sports business expert who spoke to Jabari Young of CNBC predicted that the NBA may revisit the idea of expansion in the coming years in an effort to offset the financial losses caused by the coronavirus pandemic. “Seattle and Las Vegas are by far the two most likely markets for various reasons,” said Patrick Rishe, the director of the sports business program at Washington University in St. Louis. “Today, if it was two teams, you’re talking over $1 billion that would be shared, and those two new expansion teams will not get their share of media revenues at the beginning.”
- Using his new metric BORD$, John Hollinger of The Athletic evaluated the values of this year’s free agent small forwards and power forwards. Unsurprisingly, Brandon Ingram and Anthony Davis grade out as the top forwards. Derrick Jones, Jabari Parker, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson are among the players rated highly by Hollinger’s formula, while Nuggets forward Jerami Grant is dubbed by Hollinger to be “probably the most overrated player” on this year’s free agent market.
- In a conversation with Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, draft prospect RJ Hampton discussed spending last year in New Zealand, his preparation for the 2020 draft, and why he’s modeling his offensive game after Zach LaVine.
Lowe’s Latest: Beal, Celtics, Culver, Heat, Gordon, More
Teams with interest in Bradley Beal haven’t given up hope that the Wizards will consider trading him this fall, according to Zach Lowe of ESPN, who notes that multiple “strong playoff teams” have looked into what it would take to acquire a top-10 pick and may be seeking extra assets to swing a big trade for someone like Beal.
However, the Wizards have shown zero interest in trading Beal, even for the No. 1 or No. 2 pick in this year’s draft, sources tell ESPN. The Timberwolves (No. 1) and Warriors (No. 2) are both known to be hoping to trade their selections for an All-NBA caliber player like Beal (or Ben Simmons or Devin Booker), but it seems unlikely that such a deal will materialize, says Lowe.
For the Wizards to really consider the idea of moving Beal, he may have to tell the team he would prefer to play elsewhere, per Lowe. Perhaps that will happen down the road if Washington doesn’t bounce back from a second consecutive lottery finish, but it hasn’t to this point.
Here’s much more from Lowe:
- Lowe confirms the Celtics have explored using their three first-round picks to trade up in the draft, but says Boston is considering a number of options with those picks, including trying to trade for a “solid veteran.” Since so many teams are in win-now mode, there aren’t many of those players available, according to Lowe, who says that Larry Nance Jr. and Dennis Schröder are among the players who could be under-the-radar targets for teams looking to upgrade their rotations.
- Jarrett Culver‘s name has popped up in trade rumors, but Lowe thinks the Timberwolves would only move him in a package for a star, or for a draft pick that would help acquire a star. Lowe adds that he thinks Minnesota will dangle the No. 17 pick and James Johnson‘s expiring contract in search of a veteran contributor.
- While Lowe thinks the Heat should be able to re-sign Goran Dragic on a big one-year deal, he expects it to be tougher for Miami to take the same approach with Jae Crowder, who will likely receive multiyear offers in the mid-level range.
- Rival executives have pitched the idea of the Mavericks acquiring Rudy Gobert from the Jazz, but Lowe is skeptical there will be a match there and believes Dallas will have a tough time acquiring a third star via trade this offseason.
- It’s unclear what sort of leaguewide interest there is in Magic forward Aaron Gordon. Lowe points to the Trail Blazers as a potential match, but says the two teams have never seriously discussed a swap involving Gordon and CJ McCollum and isn’t sure whether lesser assets like Zach Collins or Anfernee Simons would appeal to Orlando.
- Lowe’s offseason preview is jam-packed with many more notes and is worth checking out in full. We relayed a number of Lowe’s other most intriguing tidbits in our stories earlier today, including items on the Bucks, Pistons, and Knicks.
Knicks Rumors: Cap Room, Oladipo, Barrett, Robinson
Ian Begley of SNY.tv reported last week that the Knicks are open to accommodating salary-dump deals with their cap room this fall, and in his preview of the NBA offseason, ESPN’s Zach Lowe confirms that the team has conveyed that it’s willing to be patient and gather assets using its cap space.
However, Lowe suggests it’s not clear what exactly the Knicks’ definition of “unwanted salaries” is, adding that they may want to take on players who can help the 2020/21 club without compromising future cap room. In other words, a deal that resembles the Clippers’ acquisition of Maurice Harkless last summer might be of interest to the Knicks — that was ostensibly a salary dump, with Los Angeles receiving a first-round pick for taking on Harkless, but the veteran forward also became a regular rotation player in L.A.
As for whether the Knicks are looking to spend big on any free agents, Lowe speculates that the Knicks may be willing to go that route only for a handful of players who are “under some age threshold and available at the right price.” It’s possible that young free agents like Fred VanVleet and Christian Wood – both of whom have been linked to New York – could fit that bill if bidding doesn’t go too high.
Here’s more on the Knicks:
- The Knicks have had interest in Victor Oladipo in the past, but may have shifted into “wait and watch” mode on the Pacers guard, according to Lowe. In other words, New York probably isn’t willing to give up significant assets for Oladipo without some on-court proof that he’s fully recovered from the quad tendon injury that sidelined him for a year.
- New York has been reluctant to discuss RJ Barrett or Mitchell Robinson in any trade talks, sources tell Lowe. If the Knicks look to move up in the draft, I imagine teams would ask about one or both of those two players. However, they’re New York’s most obvious long-term cornerstones, so it’s no surprise that the team isn’t eager to make them available.
- Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic profiles new Knicks president of basketball operations Leon Rose in an in-depth story. A report earlier this week indicated that Rose is earning $8MM on his new deal with the Knicks.
NBA Hopes To Have Some Fans In Arenas To Start Season
NBA arenas won’t be at full capacity anytime soon, but teams are hoping to get some amount of fans into their buildings for the start of the 2020/21 season, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links).
As Charania explains, the exact restrictions on fan attendance will depend in large part on each NBA city’s local regulations, though the league would also have its own protocols in place related to mask-wearing and social distancing. Courtside seats, for instance, would have to be at least 10 or 12 feet away, sources tell Charania.
Within his preview of the coming offseason, ESPN’s Zach Lowe noted that Warriors officials asked the league on a recent conference call about whether it will be feasible to allow high-paying fans into luxury suites. And Golden State is far from the only team asking those sorts of questions, according to Lowe.
Those luxury suites should provide an avenue for the NBA to get more fans into buildings, per Charania, who says the league would like to have the suites at 25-to-50 percent capacity for the 2020/21 season. The league has estimated that playing the entire season in empty arenas could mean sacrificing about 40% of its usual annual revenue, but selling tickets for some seats and suites would allow teams to recoup at least a little of that lost revenue.
Of course, if a COVID-19 vaccine is approved and becomes widely available at some point in 2021, the NBA could potentially open up a more significant portion of its arenas. In the meantime, the league is expected to explore forms of rapid coronavirus testing as a possible screening method for fans.
Pistons Rumors: Cap Room, Ball, Draft, Wood, Griffin
The Pistons have “telegraphed” to other teams around the NBA that they’d prefer to use their cap room to accommodate salary dumps and accumulate draft picks rather than spending big in free agency, according to Zach Lowe of ESPN. Detroit projects to be one of the only teams that will have more than $20MM in cap space this fall.
Speaking today to reporters, new Detroit general manager Troy Weaver said that both options – using that cap room to collect assets or sign free agents – are on the table. As Weaver explained, it’ll be a juggling act for the Pistons, who want to be competitive in the short term but are also building for the future (Twitter links via James Edwards III of The Athletic).
Interestingly, Weaver added that teams haven’t been as desperate to shed salary as might be expected, given the presumed financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic (Twitter link via Edwards). If Weaver and the Pistons don’t feel as if they’re getting good value in potential salary-dump deals, the team might be more inclined to invest in free agents.
Here’s more out of Detroit:
- According to Weaver, the Pistons intend to use all 10 of their allotted pre-draft visits and LaMelo Ball is expected to be one of the prospects the club meets with in person (Twitter link via Keith Langlois of Pistons.com).
- The Pistons are “definitely” interested in picking up second-round selections in this year’s draft, Weaver said today (Twitter link via Edwards). Currently, the team only holds the No. 7 overall pick, having previously traded away its second-rounder.
- Unsurprisingly, Weaver confirmed that the Pistons are very interested in re-signing Christian Wood and will continue talks with his representatives. Asked about a potential price tag, Weaver replied, “Do I have a number in my head? Yeah, I always have a number in my head. Let’s see how it works out” (Twitter link via Edwards).
- Weaver anticipates Blake Griffin will be healthy and ready to go for the start of the 2020/21 season after missing most of the last year with a knee issue (Twitter link via Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press).
- In an article for The Athletic, James Edwards III considers whether the Pistons should roll the dice on a raw project at No. 7, like they did in the lottery a year ago with Sekou Doumbouya. Speaking today to reporters, Weaver said the Pistons are also open to moving either up or down from No. 7 (Twitter link via Sankofa).
John Lucas To Remain With Rockets On Silas’ Staff
Veteran coach John Lucas, who has been in Houston for the last four years in a player development role, will remain with the Rockets, having agreed to be part of new head coach Stephen Silas‘ staff, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link).
A former first overall pick as an NBA player, Lucas transitioned to coaching in the early 1990s and has spent time as a head coach for the Spurs, Sixers, and Cavaliers. The 66-year-old was also an assistant for the Nuggets and Clippers before eventually joining the Rockets in 2016.
After spending four years working under Mike D’Antoni, Lucas was a candidate to be promoted to take D’Antoni’s place as head coach in Houston. He was reportedly one of three finalists – alongside Silas and Jeff Van Gundy – and there was a belief that some Rockets players were pulling for him to get the job.
When the team opted instead for Silas, it wasn’t clear whether Lucas would stick around. However, new general manager Rafael Stone is said to be one of Lucas’ biggest backers in the organization and the two sides were apparently able to work out a new deal.
The Rockets are reportedly hoping that Silas’ coaching staff will include at least two former NBA head coaches. Lucas fits that bill, though it looks like the club will miss out on rumored target Nate McMillan. Houston was also said to be in talks with Jeff Hornacek.
Draft Rumors: Avdija, Warriors, Okongwu, Trades, More
The list of teams that have talked to Israeli wing Deni Avdija includes the Hawks, Pistons, Cavaliers, Spurs, and Bucks, according to Ethan Strauss of The Athletic.
Those first three teams all have draft picks in the top seven and San Antonio could theoretically move up from No. 11, but it’s hard to imagine a scenario in which Milwaukee would have a shot at Avdija. Strauss adds that Avdija is believed to prefer to land with the Warriors, who worked him out last month.
Speaking of the Warriors, as they mull the possibility of trading down from No. 2, Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report says there are definitely players they like who will be available in the mid-to-late lottery range. If they remain at No. 2, James Wiseman is probably the favorite, according to Wasserman, who hears Golden State is higher on Wiseman than Anthony Edwards. The team is also believed to be high on Avdija and Devin Vassell, Wasserman adds.
Here’s more on the draft:
- Wasserman provides a few more interesting tidbits within his latest mock draft for Bleacher Report, writing that Patrick Williams has become a “coveted target” for the Pistons, the Suns have legit interest in Kira Lewis, and the Kings are heavily weighing analytics as they mull their draft options. Previous reports indicated that Williams is in play for Detroit at No. 7 and that Phoenix has interviewed Lewis more than once.
- Projected lottery pick Onyeka Okongwu has recently met with the Hornets, Spurs, and Wizards and will meet with the Cavaliers this week, tweets Wasserman. Teams believe that Okongwu could come off the board as high as No. 3 to Charlotte and is unlikely to fall past Washington at No. 9, Wasserman notes (via Twitter).
- ESPN’s Zach Lowe doesn’t expect any teams with first-round picks to sell them, but wouldn’t be surprised if some clubs look to swap a late first-rounder for a “roughly equivalent” future pick. He also says it’s a safe bet that a number of second-rounders will be sold for cash.
Bucks Rumors: Giannis, Bogdanovic, Barnes, Oladipo
Many people within the Bucks organization remain confident that Giannis Antetokounmpo will sign the five-year, super-max extension the team is prepared to offer him once the NBA’s new league year begins, writes Zach Lowe of ESPN.
As Lowe writes, the Bucks’ plan if Antetokounmpo doesn’t sign that extension before the start of the 2020/21 season hasn’t changed — the team still has no intention of trading him and is prepared to play out the year with or without a long-term deal in place.
Here’s more on the Bucks from Lowe’s super-sized offseason preview at ESPN.com:
- Confirming an October report that suggested the Bucks will pursue Bogdan Bogdanovic, Lowe says Milwaukee “loves” the Kings‘ restricted free agent swingman. According to Lowe, the Bucks have explored some sign-and-trade ideas involving Bogdanovic that would also see them take on Sacramento forward Harrison Barnes. However, it’s unclear if they’ve engaged in the Kings in any real trade talks or if those discussions have been mostly internal and/or exploratory.
- The Bucks are keeping an eye on Pacers guard Victor Oladipo, but no substantive talks have taken place yet between Milwaukee and Indiana, sources tell ESPN. Many of the teams monitoring Oladipo would like to see him in action again before engaging with the Pacers, Lowe adds.
- There has been no traction – and possibly no talks – on a potential Chris Paul trade between the Thunder and Bucks, multiple sources tell Lowe. A previous report indicated that Milwaukee was unlikely to pursue the All-Star point guard.
Latest On Jrue Holiday
A Wednesday morning report indicated that the Pelicans are “openly discussing” Jrue Holiday in trade talks, and while it doesn’t appear there’s any momentum toward a deal at this point, a few Holiday-related items have surfaced in the last 24 hours that are worth passing along.
For instance, Mike Singer of The Denver Post and Will Guillory of The Athletic (Twitter links) have each confirmed that New Orleans is listening to offers for Holiday. However, according to Guillory, the veteran guard hasn’t asked the Pelicans to trade him. Holiday remains optimistic about the Pelicans’ young talent and is open to the idea of making it work in New Orleans, Guillory writes.
Here’s more on the Pelicans’ guard:
- A previous report indicated that the Nets and Pelicans discussed a possible Holiday deal at last season’s trade deadline. According to Guillory, the Heat and Nuggets also “heavily pursued” the 30-year-old prior to the 2020 deadline. That doesn’t mean that all those teams will once again be suitors this offseason, but it seems safe to assume that Brooklyn and Denver will be in the mix. The Heat’s enthusiasm for a Holiday deal may depend on whether they’d be comfortable with the possibility of him exercising his player option for 2021/22.
- Zach Lowe of ESPN thinks the Holiday bidding will probably center on the Nuggets, Nets, and Warriors, along with possibly the Heat, Hawks, and Mavericks. Atlanta is interested in moving the No. 6 overall pick for a win-now veteran, but Lowe doesn’t think that pick would be enough to get it done on its own.
- Lowe is also somewhat skeptical that the Warriors would give up the No. 2 pick for “a 30-year-old who has never made an All-NBA team,” though he acknowledges he might be wrong — especially if New Orleans is willing to send back the No. 13 pick or take on Andrew Wiggins‘ contract.
- Responding to the Holiday trade rumors on Wednesday, Pelicans president of basketball operations David Griffin‘s comments were somewhat opaque (link via Oleh Kosel of The Bird Writes). However, Griffin did seem to confirm that the team is listening to inquires on Holiday.