People all over the world have been forced to isolate themselves at home with no clear end in sight. The authorities insist on people staying at home and keeping the distance to slow the spread of the virus as much as possible. This is already a strain on some. If you add the fact that there are no live sports to follow – things can get almost unbearable at times. Having pro basketball resume would be a step in the right direction towards normalcy.
Even the athletes are forced to shelter in place, with discussions about the pros and cons of resistance training online being the closest they get to training these days. Everyone is eager to know when sports will resume – especially pro basketball – even if only to TV, with no live audiences. Basketball fans are not an exception.
The Return of Pro Basketball to Aid in Helping the Return to Normalcy
Hopeful for the Return of the NBA
Adam Silver, the National Basketball Association’s commissioner, still hopes to play out the remaining games of the season. The pressure is high, especially on the financial side. The clubs need revenues to stay alive, and these revenues have essentially dropped to zero due to the ongoing pandemic.
If the NBA is to return, it won’t happen any sooner than June. Or better said, “significantly later than June”, as Silver put it. The league hopes to re-open team facilities but this won’t happen before May 8th. A lot depends, of course, on the evolution of the ongoing pandemic that doesn’t seem to slow down right now.
Teams like the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, and the Milwaukee Bucks are hoping the season resumes. These teams are prime NBA title contenders.
European Basketball Returning Soon, With Some Changes
The regular basketball seasons in Europe have pretty much all have been suspended. In some countries, the situation seems to be improving. Athletes will be able to resume training (and, eventually, matches) sooner rather than later.
In Germany, the clubs of the Basketball Bundesliga have agreed to play out the rest of the season with just 10 of the 17 teams, at a location that will be decided and announced on May 4th. The playoffs will begin as soon as the health authorities allow it.
In France, matches could resume as early as June, pending approval by the health authorities. When it comes to EuroLeague, there is no word on if and when it will resume the matches suspended in March.
The effects of the pandemic have been felt by the EuroBasket tournament scheduled for 2021. Due to the changing schedule of other major international sporting events, the tournament has been postponed until September 2022.
The Professional Basketball World is Hopeful for a Return, Soon
If all goes well, we’ll be able to see the first games played by professional basketball players as early as June. The matches, of course, will be played behind closed doors. The public will not have access to the stadiums. Even if the TV will be the only medium through which we’ll be able to follow live basketball again, it will be much better than nothing, right?
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