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Right after the conclusion of the 2019-20 NBA season, commissioner Adam Silver sent out a note to fans which made mention of the league's main goal for the following season.
Per Noah Coslov, Silver pointed out that the league's goal is to have fans back in home arenas for the 2020-21 NBA season. However, Silver noted that the first priority is the health and safety of the general public.
A note from Adam Silver pic.twitter.com/YM3EbKcbwT
— Noah Coslov (@NoahCoslov) October 12, 2020
The last time that NBA games had fans in arenas was on March 11 — the day that the league suspended the season indefinitely due to the coronavirus. The season resumed in July in Orlando at Walt Disney World. No fans were allowed in arenas. The NBA only allowed family members of players, staff, and league personnel to enter the bubble at the end of August.
Ahead of Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Silver noted that the development of a coronavirus vaccine is not a prerequisite to kick off the 2020-21 NBA season with fans in the arenas.
“Based on everything I’ve read, there’s almost no chance that there will be a vaccine at least that is widely distributed at least before we start the next season. I do not see the development of a vaccine as a prerequisite,” Silver, per Mark Medina of USA Today. “My sense with rapid testing is we may not have 19,000 people in the building. We’ll see. But that, with appropriate protocols in terms of distancing and with advanced testing, you will be able to bring fans back into the arenas.”
The NBA has yet to set dates for the beginning of free agency, schedule of the training camps, and the opening night of the 2020-21 NBA season.
Other sports leagues such as football and baseball are following roughly 25% of arena capacity to meet physical distancing recommendations. Whether the NBA follows suit is a matter of wait-and-see.
