It’s been six weeks since the NBA (and most other professional sports leagues) officially went on hiatus amid the COVID-19 outbreak, and despite some states now taking measures to reopen their economies and relax their social distancing protocols, the path to resuming the current season remains as murky as ever.
Commissioner Adam Silver has reiterated that the league will not return until the safety of the players, media, league personnel, and fans can be reasonably assured, which presents all sorts of logistical conundrums and no easy solutions. Plenty of ideas have been floated — some more feasible than others — and it’s clear that it’s going to require some creative problem-solving from everyone involved.
One possibility that has gained some traction is the idea of playing games in a single location that would reduce the amount of travel normally required. On Wednesday, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweeted that the league is considering the Disney World Resort in Orlando as one such location.
One possible playing ground for NBA if finishing season becomes safe for league and players: Walt Disney World Resort property in Orlando, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. League has kept different scenarios in mind.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 29, 2020
Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press went on to say that Disney President Bog Iger pitched the idea to league officials this week.
Disney’s Central Florida campus has been talked about for at least a couple weeks. https://t.co/PfDdyHYR4L https://t.co/zimPHF41f2
— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) April 29, 2020
Las Vegas has also been mentioned as a possible location. The key in this scenario would be finding a way to quarantine players and other team personnel in a single location in order to reduce the risk as much as possible. It would also require the adequate facilities in which to play the actual games — which the Wide World of Sports would have — as well as the space to house such a large contingent. Regardless, any such scenario is likely still relatively far down the road.
