For the better part of the past week, the NBA has been expected to make a proposal to resume the 2019-20 season.
Now we know what that proposal will look like.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, NBA commissioner Adam Silver will propose that 22 of the league's 30 teams return to action in late-July at Disney World in Orlando during a call with the league's Board of Governors on Thursday. Silver's proposal will include the 22 teams returning playing in eight regular-season games to determine playoff seeding, with the possibility for play-in tournaments for the No. 8 seeds.
Per Charania, the play-in tournaments would work as follows: "If the ninth seed is more than four games behind the eighth seed, the eighth seed earns the playoff spot; if the ninth seed is four or fewer games behind, then the eighth and ninth seed will enter a play-in tournament that is double-elimination for the eighth seed and single-elimination for ninth."
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the 22 teams returning to action will include the 16 teams currently in position for playoff spots, as well as the New Orleans Pelicans, Portland TrailBlazers, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings and San Antonio Spurs in the West and the Washington Wizards in the East. Per Wojnarowski, the Board of Governors intends to approve the proposal during a 12:30 p.m. ET call.
July 31 is the league's targeted return date with the NBA Draft Lottery and combine to be held in August. The league is also expected to make proposals for the following safety measures regarding the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which led to the NBA suspending its season indefinitely on March 11:
- Players not being permitted to shower in the arena
- Bench players to sit in spread-out rows with inactive players in the stands
- No guests in attendance until the playoffs