Drew Shiller examines how the 2020-21 NBA season potentially starting on Dec. 22 impacts the Warriors, and why the league would consider that date.
If you're a Warriors fan and hoping to watch your squad take the court on Christmas Day, you might see your wish come true.
Some major news regarding the 2020-21 NBA season surfaced Friday.
"The NBA’s league office informed the Board of Governors that it is targeting to start the 2020-21 season on Dec. 22, and would like to play a 72-game campaign," The Athletic's Shams Charania writes. "This would mean a return close to the NBA’s normal schedule, significant financial ramifications to start early, a potential finish before the 2021 Summer Olympics, and allow a window for stars to play in the Olympics."
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SIGN UP HERE This information comes a couple of hours after it became clear that playing regular season games on Christmas was gaining momentum.
"The NBA's board of governors is meeting Friday, and there has been some discussion among owners about starting as soon as Christmas Day to take advantage of that historically prime NBA showcase," ESPN's Zach Lowe and Brian Windhorst reported.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver in late September left the door open for a Christmas start, but it sure sounded like the league was targeting January.
"My best guess is that the season won't start until 2021," Silver told Bob Costas in a conversation that aired on CNN. "We said a week or so ago that the earliest we would start is Christmas.
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"But the more I'm learning, I continue to believe that we're gonna be better off getting into January."
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The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association still have to sort through myriad details before anything becomes official.
“It may be too quick, but it also makes too much sense,” one high-ranking team official told Charania.
Everything remains fluid, but it seems highly unlikely that the start of the season is pushed back to late February or March.
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With the NBA draft taking place Nov. 18, free agency assuredly will need to begin immediately thereafter in order for training camps to open about a month before the regular season begins.
It seems like players might have to sign deals before Thanksgiving and report to their respective cities shortly after the holiday passes. That is an insanely quick turnaround (not to mention the NBA Finals ended less than two weeks ago), but we are in unprecedented times. Everybody needs to be willing to make sacrifices and adjust their expectations.
Golden State's final game last season before the coronavirus pandemic shut things down was on March 10. So if the Warriors -- who possess the No. 2 overall pick in the draft -- open the 2020-21 campaign on Dec. 22 or 23, they officially will go 9.5 months between games.