NBA Schedule Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lakers, Celtics Among Teams Hosting Christmas Day Games

December 1st, 2020 at 7:35pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets that the NBA has set its Christmas Day schedule for 2020/21.

Woj emphasizes that the currently starry five games scheduled are “tentative.” That’s likely due to the risk of COVID-19 cases preventing certain contests, rather than the league continuing to finalize the schedule.

ESPN reporters Andrew Lopez, Eric Woodyard, Nick Friedell, Dave McMenamin, and Ohm Youngmisuk have weighed in on the five scheduled games.

Here’s the full list of anticipated Christmas Day matchups, per Woj’s reporting:

New Orleans Pelicans at Miami Heat, 12 p.m. EST
Golden State Warriors at Milwaukee Bucks, 2:30 p.m. EST
Brooklyn Nets at Boston Celtics, 5 pm. EST
Dallas Mavericks at Los Angeles Lakers, 8 p.m. EST
Los Angeles Clippers at Denver Nuggets, 10:30 p.m. EST

All four 2020 conference finalists will be present, though none will be facing each other. The champion Lakers, led by LeBron James and Anthony Davis and filled out by a revamped roster of role players, will host the Mavericks, looking to take a leap in the standings after rising superstar Luka Doncic‘s first All-Star season.

The Eastern Conference champion Heat, fronted by Jimmy Butler and newly-extended Bam Adebayo, will host another Western Conference club with a promising rep from the NBA’s next wave of superstars, the Pelicans and second-year forward Zion Williamson.

The Nuggets/Clippers matchup should feature plenty of fireworks, as Los Angeles faced ample scrutiny for letting go of the rope enough for Denver to climb all the way out of a 3-1 deficit to win their second-round matchup during the 2020 playoffs.

The Celtics will square off against the formidable Nets, piloted by a newly healthy Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

Reigning two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, meanwhile, will do battle with Durant’s old club, the Warriors, led by a former two-time MVP of their own in Stephen Curry. Antetokounmpo’s Bucks have recorded league-leading regular season records, only to fall short of the Finals in the playoffs during each of the last two seasons. Milwaukee is no doubt hopeful that its offseason makeover will amend that. The Warriors, meanwhile, saw their championship hopes jeopardized after All-Star shooting guard Klay Thompson incurred an Achilles tear that will sideline him for the entire season.

The Raptors, Rockets and Sixers, three perennial playoff clubs that (currently) have two All-Stars apiece, appear to be the biggest snubs this season, although the fate of Houston’s two All-Stars remains in flux.

Assuming every game happens as scheduled, which December 25 bout are you most excited for in 2020? Are there any teams or matchups you’re disappointed to see (or not see) listed? Let us know what you think in our comments section!

NBA Announces 2020 Preseason Schedule

November 27th, 2020 at 3:28pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has officially released the full schedule for its 2020 preseason, which will tip off on Friday, December 11. The preseason slate features 49 total games and runs through Saturday, December 19.

As the league explains in its press release, every team will play at least one home game and one road game. There are some clubs playing as many as four games, while others just play two or three.

The full schedule, which begins with a five-game slate that include a Lakers/Clippers matchup, can be found right here.

The NBA indicated in its announcement that the schedule for the first half of the 2020/21 regular season (December 22 through March 4) will be released “in the coming days.” The schedule for the second half (March 11 to May 16) will be announced during the latter portion of the first-half schedule, according to the league.

Details On 2020/21 Season, Play-In Tournament Announced By NBA

November 17th, 2020 at 7:36pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The NBA has announced details on the revamped schedule for the 2020/21 season, including a confirmation that there will be a play-in tournament between the No. 7-10 seeds in both conferences for the first time (Twitter link).

The league has noted that it will release the dates for its individual game schedule in two portions. The NBA did release its plan for the schedule in a matrix grid, per Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic (Twitter link), though it will not announce the specific dates of its matchups until “around the start of training camp.” The second half of 2020/21 is set to be announced during the season’s first half.

Still, we now know several of the nuances for the NBA’s 75th season. For the 72 regular season games in this truncated season, teams will play three games against all teams within their own conference, and two against teams in the other conference.

Here are the set dates for the NBA season as they stand presently:

December 11-19, 2020: Preseason
December 22, 2020 – March 4, 2021: The first half of the NBA’s regular season
March 5-10, 2021: The NBA All-Star break
March 11 – May 16, 2021: The second half of the regular season
May 18-21, 2021: Play-In Tournament
May 22 – July 22, 2021: NBA Playoffs

The league went on to note that the second half of the season, set to commence after the All-Star break concludes on March 11, 2021, will not only include the scheduled games, but also “any games postponed [due to COVID-19 issues] during the first half that can reasonably be added to the second half schedule.”

As for the play-in tournament, it’ll pit the seventh- and eighth-best teams in each conference against one another, with the winner earning the No. 7 seed. The loser of that game will face the winner of a matchup between the ninth- and 10th-best teams. The winner of that contest will become the No. 8 seed.

Trade Moratorium To Be Lifted At Noon ET Monday

November 15th, 2020 at 9:31am CST by Arthur Hill

The NBA is a little more than 24 hours away from allowing teams to start making trades, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Sources tell Woj that the moratorium will end at 12:00 pm eastern time on Monday, giving teams a small window to complete deals before Wednesday night’s draft.

The league has also established some important dates for the upcoming season, Wojnarowski adds, with opening night set for December 22 as expected (Twitter link). An All-Star break will take place from March 5-10, although no game will be played.

The regular season is projected to end between May 17 and 21 with a play-in tournament to determine seeds seven through 10. The conference semifinals will begin June 7, with the conference finals starting June 22 and the NBA Finals set for July 8-22. The trade deadline hasn’t been determined yet, according to Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link).

The play-in tournament must be approved by the Board of Governors, but a source tells Wojnarowski that’s considered a formality (Twitter link). As with the series in Orlando between the Trail Blazers and Grizzlies, the No. 7 and 8 seeds will just need one win to advance, while the ninth and 10th seeds would have to win twice. May 17-21 are the tentative dates for the tournament.

As expected, this year’s salary cap ($109.1MM) and luxury tax figures ($132.6MM) will be maintained for next season (Twitter link). According to Woj’s sources, the early cap and tax projections for future seasons are $112.4MM and $136.6MM for 2021/22, $115.7MM and $140MM for 2022/23 and $119.2MM and $144.9MM for 2023/24 (Twitter link).

In addition, the league and its players union have reached a deal that either side can terminate the Collective Bargaining Agreement after next season or the 2021/22 season, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Both sides already had a mutual option to terminate the CBA after the 2022/23 season.

December 21 will be the last day for players to sign super-max and rookie scale extensions, Marks tweets. That deadline is especially significant in Milwaukee, where the Bucks hope to reach a long-term deal with Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Most player and team option decisions throughout the league will have to be made by 5:00 pm ET Thursday, a source tells Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press (Twitter link). A prominent exception appears to be Anthony Davis of the Lakers, who may have to decide on his $28.75MM player option by Monday.

NBA Targeting Mid-December Preseason

November 14th, 2020 at 2:12pm CST by JD Shaw

The NBA is targeting December 11-19 for a potential 2020/21 preseason, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Teams would have the option of requesting three or four games, with each franchise being required to host at least one contest.

The proposed timetable would finish three days before the start of the regular season on December 22. The idea of having a shortened preseason — or no preseason — had caused concern for some players and agents in terms of preventing injuries, with several teams not playing since March.

On the flip side, teams such as the Lakers and Heat are set to receive an offseason that spans less than two months. Teams that play in the NBA Finals traditionally receive a three-month offseason, with those eliminated in previous rounds getting more time off.

Other key dates for the 2020/21 season include November 18 (draft), November 20 (free agency begins), November 22 (players can sign contracts) and December 1 (training camps officially begin).

Community Shootaround: 72-Game Schedule

November 7th, 2020 at 7:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

For decades, there have been complaints that the NBA’s season is too long. Playing 82 games dilutes the product, critics claim, and lessens the importance of each one. It also creates a marathon atmosphere that presents a high risk of injury and causes players to sometimes seem unmotivated.

People who have wanted to see the league try a shorter schedule are about to get their wish. After the chaos caused last season by the pandemic, the NBA and its players union have agreed to take steps toward a normal timeline by adopting a 72-game schedule that will start December 22.

Details on how those 72 games will be allocated still have to be worked out. The NBA hopes to reduce travel during the upcoming season, so games between teams from the Eastern and Western conferences could be reduced or even eliminated. An All-Star break is still expected in March, although it hasn’t been determined if it will include normal All-Star Weekend activities. A play-in tournament could also be adopted.

If the upcoming season is successful, the league may attempt to keep the shorter schedule, writes Jabari Young of CNBC.

“I would argue, with a leap of faith, that we’ll never see 82 again,” said Tony Ponturo, CEO of Ponturo Management Group, a marketing consulting firm. “It’s going to be better across the board of quality basketball and healthier athletes. You take the (revenue) hit and figure out how to make it up in other ways.”

Young also cites comments from NBA president of operations Byron Spruell, who suggested at the Disney World complex that the league would be open to schedule changes if they result in a better product. Another idea being considered is adopting series schedules, much like Major League Baseball, to make road trips less exhausting.

“Having this experience around being on a campus, with health and safety first – there are a lot of learnings that make you think about,” Spruell said in August. “Is there something in between given where the pandemic might be next season, given the experience we’re seeing from our teams and players in this campus format? Is there something in between that we’ll be able to accomplish, too?”

The obvious concern with a shorter schedule is the lost revenue as each team has five fewer home games. Young cites several ways to make up the difference, including higher ticket prices as games become more scarce, increased revenue from the play-in games and additional sponsorship opportunities.

We want to get your opinion. Do you believe there would be a noticeable difference in the quality of play with a permanent 72-game schedule or would you prefer to see the league continue with its traditional 82-game slate? Please leave your answer in the comments section.

NBPA Approves December 22 Start For 2020/21 Season

November 6th, 2020 at 6:52am CST by Luke Adams

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.

NBA, NBPA Moving Toward Agreement On December 22 Start

November 4th, 2020 at 3:49pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA’s Board of Governors and the National Basketball Players Association will hold separate calls on Thursday that are expected to culminate in an agreement on a December 22 start date for the 2020/21 regular season, according to Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe of ESPN.

As Shams Charania of The Athletic previously reported, the NBPA is expected to vote before the end of the week on the league’s December 22 proposal. Wojnarowski and Lowe say that vote will likely take place on Thursday night and that everything is progressing toward a deal between the NBA and the players’ union.

Per Woj and Lowe, the union is holding team conference calls prior to Thursday night – including several today – to provide details on the plan for 2020/21, including how the salary escrow will work going forward.

As Charania reported on Wednesday and as ESPN’s duo confirms, rather than holding a significant percentage (25-40%) of players’ salaries in escrow for ’20/21, the modified escrow figure is expected to be around 18% and will be applied to multiple seasons, smoothing out the losses for players.

Since the NBA and its players split revenue roughly 50/50 and the league is projecting a significant revenue decline for ’20/21, increasing the salary escrow is necessary to account for the losses from the players’ side.

According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link), an 18% escrow for next season would withhold about $720MM from the players, not counting the reduced pay based on a 72-game schedule instead of an 82-game slate. The league and the union are still negotiating that 18% figure though, Woj and Lowe note.

Once the NBA and NBPA reach an agreement on the salary cap, escrow, season start date, and all the other major aspects of the Collective Bargaining Agreement that need to be tweaked, the transaction moratorium can be lifted and dates for free agency can officially be set.

As Charania detailed on Wednesday, a 72-game season that starts on December 22 is expected to end around mid-May, with the Finals finishing around July 22, just in time for the Tokyo Olympics. The NBA is planning for a 25% reduction in travel, with a six-day All-Star break in early March. Training camps would open on or around December 1.

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, as Lakers forward Jared Dudley explained today during an appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio with Frank Isola (audio link), the NBA’s proposal of a December 22 start date and 72-game season is the only option that makes financial sense for players.

“We’ll vote on it, but to be honest with you, there’s no real vote. No one’s playing 55 games. We’ve got to play 72,” Dudley said. “It’s the money thing.”

The NBA has estimated that starting the season before Christmas will save upwards of $500MM to $1 billion in future revenue, per ESPN and other outlets.

NBPA To Vote On December Start Thursday Or Friday

November 3rd, 2020 at 5:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The National Basketball Players Association is planning to hold a vote on Thursday night or Friday morning on the league’s proposal to start next season on December 22, Shams Charania of The Athletic reports.

The NBPA, led by executive director Michele Roberts, started holding conference calls with players from each team on Monday and that process will go through Thursday morning. The tone of those calls gave the impression the season is likely to start before Christmas, Charania adds. In that instance, a 72-game season would be held.

The alternative start date is Martin Luther King Day on January 18 with a 60-game regular season. Previous reports suggested the league might limit the season to 50 games if it started in mid-January.

Sources communicated to Charania that NBA players feel the December 22 league start will happen. The NBA has projected that teams and players could suffer significant financial losses with a January start. The week of Christmas traditionally produces ample revenue, numbering in the hundreds of millions of dollars, for the league.

The league predicted that its television network partners may want to renegotiate their lucrative NBA contracts should Christmas games be skipped this season. Under either restart date, the NBA would reduce travel between arenas by 25% to minimize COVID-19 risk, and there would be a six-day All-Star Break. Also, a play-in tournament for the seventh through tenth seeds in both conferences would transpire.

Both the league and the NBPA are targeting a $109MM salary cap and a $132MM luxury tax. The two sides differ when it comes to how they feel the cap and tax should evolve beyond the 2020/21 season, however. The NBA would like to keep a flat tax and cap over the next few years, while the NBPA would prefer an annual increase, sources tell Charania.

If the two sides agree to a 72-game season tipping off on December 22, there would be 14 back-to-back games per team. The regular season would conclude around May 16, and the NBA Finals would finish at the end of July.

Were the NBA to embark upon a 60-game regular season on January 18, each team would have to deal with 12 back-to-back games. The regular season would resolve in June, and the NBA Finals would wrap up around the end of August.

Alex Kirschenbaum contributed to this report.

NBA, NBPA Face Increasingly Short Window To Negotiate December 22 Start

November 2nd, 2020 at 3:31pm CST by Luke Adams

In a call today with the league’s general managers, the NBA said there’s still no agreement in place with the National Basketball Players Association on a timeline for the 2020/21 regular season, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

As Wojnarowski details, talks are ongoing between the league and the players’ union, but the two sides face an increasingly short window to negotiate all the necessary details ahead of a potential December 22 start (with a possible December 1 start date for training camps). Besides agreeing on a schedule for the season, the two sides continue to work through a series of financial amendments to the Collective Bargaining Agreement (Twitter link).

According to Wojnarowski (Twitter link), commissioner Adam Silver told teams on today’s conference call, “We’re running out of time.”

Despite that ominous comment from Silver, and despite the fact that many players reportedly prefer a January 18 start, I certainly wouldn’t rule out a December 22 opening night. The NBA has estimated that postponing the start of the 2020/21 season to mid-January could cost the league upwards of $500MM to $1 billion in revenue next season and beyond. Lost revenue is bad news for the players as well as the league, so the NBPA has plenty of incentive to figure out how to make the earlier start date work.

The NBA and NBPA pushed back the CBA termination deadline for a fourth time last week, setting a deadline of this Friday, November 6. If the two sides can agree to most of the major CBA details by that date, a pre-Christmas start still seems realistic. If that deadline has to be postponed yet again, that may not bode well for the December 22 target date.