There has been much speculation about the NBA’s return. The most likely site for NBA games will be at Disney World in Orlando, as it has the courts and hotels needed to accommodate the players and the return to basketball.
ESPN is also owned by Disney, which is one of the channels that nationally televises the games. The NBA Finals are also televised on ABC, which is owned by Disney.
There have been also talks of the NBA going into a 1-16 format for the Playoffs. That would be possible since the travel factor wouldn’t be in the way as it always is.
JJ Redick chimed in on what he’s heard about the NBA’s return on The JJ Redick podcast with Tommy Alter.
“The scenario I’ve heard…the top 6 teams are basically locked,” Redick said. “And they either scrimmage or play games that don’t mean anything. And then 7-11 seeds or 7-12 in both conferences play for 7-8 seeds.”
Teams that are out of the playoffs would just like their season to be over and the 7-11 or 7-12 seeded teams playing for two spots in the playoffs would be interesting to watch.
The 1-16 format would be interesting though because if a couple teams were playing for the 15th and 16th seeds the fans would get better competition and more teams that are not going to make it to the playoffs get to get ready for the draft, free agency and the next season.
The NBA knows what’s best for them and their brand, though, so we will have to wait and see what they decide.
