NBA Expected to Unveil Plans to Resume Play

The National Basketball Association is expected to unveil a plan to return to play that would call for 22 teams to play eight regular-season games in Orlando, then pivot to post-season play, according to a new report.

ESPN reported Wednesday that the league’s board of governors is expected to convene Thursday to approve the plan. An NBA spokesman could not be reached for immediate comment. The NBA and Walt Disney Co. said last month that they had entered into talks to re-start the league’s season in late July, with teams centered around Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports complex in Disney World.

The NBA suspended its season in mid-March due to the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

Under the plan being discussed, according to ESPN, the league would resume its season on July 31, with the possible game in the NBA Finals taking place October 12. The league would then move to hold its annual draft and open free agency.