Category Archives: NBA

Bucks, Lakers seek Thursday rebounds as favorites

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The 2020 NBA playoffs were always going to be unusual and memorable because they are being played in front of no fans in the Orlando bubble and home-court advantage doesn’t exist. It gives off the feeling that anything could happen, and wow did it on Tuesday.

The Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers finished with the top seeds in their respective conferences and had been the two favorites to win the NBA title essentially all season. They no longer are after both were stunned by No. 8 seeds in Game 1 of their quarterfinal series Tuesday, pushing the Los Angeles Clippers temporarily into the role of title favorites.

Milwaukee suffered one of the biggest stunners in postseason history as it was a 14-point favorite over the No. 8 Orlando Magic, who not just won Tuesday but largely dominated in a 122-110 final. Magic center Nikola Vucevic led six Orlando players in double-figure points with 35, adding 14 rebounds. He was the first Magic player to record a 35/10 game in a playoff contest since Dwight Howard did it in 2011.

Next NBA Draft Combine could go regional

The NBA has already faced – quite successfully – a number of challenges this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. After the season was suddenly halted as it entered its second half this past March, it was able to figure out an alternative to the NBA Finals, moving the top teams to Disney World in Orlando, Florida to play in what has affectionately become known as the NBA Bubble. The plan worked, and the remaining teams are now in the playoffs as they compete to see who will be the best team of this odd, 2019-20 season. If the LA Lakers keep going the way they have been, they’ll be eliminated quickly, but that’s a topic for another day. Now, it’s time to focus on other changes the NBA has to make in order to prepare for the future and allow up-and-coming stars to leave their mark on the world’s basketball league. 

The NBA Draft Lottery will be held tomorrow, adopting a virtual format similar to that used for the NFL Draft. Team representatives will participate in a large Zoom call, bringing together 14 teams that need the most help in the upcoming season. They include the Atlanta Hawks, the Charlotte Hornets, the Chicago Bulls, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Detroit Pistons, the Golden State Warriors, the Memphis Grizzlies, the Minnesota Timberwolves, the New Orleans Pelicans, the New York Knicks, the Phoenix Suns, the Sacramento Kings, the San Antonio Spurs and the Washington Wizards. 

Sports gambling fans can even place bets on who will win the lottery. Following the lottery, the NBA Draft is expected to be held on October 16 – most likely, it will be virtual, as well. Where and at what time the draft will take place hasn’t been released.

In addition to the virtual draft lottery and a potential virtual draft, there is also another first for the NBA this year. It could be considering changes to how it runs the NBA Combine, an opportunity for second-round players to show off their talents and grab attention from teams and scouts. The details haven’t been completely worked out yet, but the idea is, instead of grouping all the players together at one facility, there could be regional Combines established, reducing the risk of spreading COVID-19. 

Bucks, Thunder favorites on Tuesday NBA playoff odds

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The one great thing about the NBA playing its postseason in the Orlando bubble? In the early rounds of the playoffs, there will be multiple games per day spread out time-wise. It will almost feel daily like the first two days of the NCAA Tournament for basketball fans and bettors.

There are four games Tuesday, with the first tip at 1:30 p.m. ET with the Eastern Conference top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks beginning their quest for a second NBA title in franchise history as they “host” the eighth-seeded Orlando Magic. Clearly, home-court advantage means nothing in the bubble, but the home team gets to wear its home uniforms and the digital surroundings around the court will make it feel like that club (somewhat) is playing at home.

The Bucks are incredibly fortunate they will have superstar and likely repeat NBA MVP winner Giannis Antetokounmpo for this game. The Greek Freak probably deserved a multiple-game suspension for headbutting the Wizards’ Moe Wagner last Tuesday. Had it been seldom-used teammate and brother Thanasis doing the headbutting, he would have gotten at least two games, but Giannis got just the one so he will be on the court Tuesday.

The NBA funded a coronavirus test project, and the results look good

This has been the year of the NBA. The basketball league has made a couple of firsts that will forever become a part of any playbook, and the hits keep on coming. The NBA Bubble in Orlando, Florida has proven to be a highly successful alternative if another global pandemic comes along, although it hopefully won’t be necessary, and the league was behind a major study on a potential coronavirus test that could now have worldwide implications. Led by scientists at Yale University, a saliva-based COVID-19 test involving the NBA has just received approval by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA).

The test, SalivaDirect, was administered to players and staffers on various NBA teams after being approved by the league and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), with both the NBA and the NBPA also assisting with funding. Currently, a nasal swab has been the most accepted form of COVID-19 test, but it’s costly and results can take days to be received. SalivaDirect is said to be just as accurate, doesn’t require any additional components and can be read considerably sooner.

Explains Chantal Vogels, a Yale postdoctoral fellow, who led the laboratory development and validation along with adjunct assistant clinical professor Doug Brackney, “This is a huge step forward to make testing more accessible. This started off as an idea in our lab soon after we found saliva to be a promising sample type of the detection of SARS-CoV-2, and now it has the potential to be used on a large scale to help protect public health. We are delighted to make this contribution to the fight against coronavirus.”

Because the test doesn’t depend on any proprietary technology, it becomes substantially easier to use. In addition, Yale, unlike the pharmaceutical companies, doesn’t plan on using SalivaDirect as a money-maker. Instead, it will make the protocols available to diagnostic laboratories so that these can help facilitate widespread testing. These labs, however, could (and definitely will) charge for the tests, with estimated costs coming in at around $10 each.

The NBA is closer to crowning a winner as playoff brackets set

The NBA Bubble at Disney World in Orland, Florida has been everything basketball fans could have hoped for. There have been some exciting underdog wins, a few instances of players butting heads – literally – and athletes escaping to score some hot wings. As the regular season draws to a close, the playoff bracket is now set, and fans can look forward to a lot of the same hot action when the postseason begins next Monday. 

Before the postseason run to the championship can get going, there will first be a play-in tournament held for the Western Conference, which will see the Portland Trail Blazers (currently in eighth place) taking on the Memphis Grizzlies (ninth place). Because they’re only four games apart, this will be used to determine the eighth seed for the playoffs, which the Blazers can take if they win the first game on the play-in tournament. If, on the other hand, the Grizzlies take Game 1, they can end up in eighth if they then take the second game. This year, seeding isn’t as important as it has been in other seasons. There is no true “home court” advantage since everyone’s in the bubble.

Once that series is decided, the winner will take on the LA Lakers in the first round of the playoffs. The Oklahoma City Thunder are going up against the Houston Rockets, the LA Clippers take on the Dallas Mavericks and the Denver Nuggets will battle the Utah Jazz, finishing out the conference semifinalists.

In the East, the layout for the first round of the playoff bracket is already set and no play-in game is needed. The Milwaukee Bucks, who lead the conference, will go up against the Orlando Magic, the Miami Heat meet the Indiana Pacers, the Toronto Raptors will face the Brooklyn Nets and the Boston Celtics will take on the Philadelphia 76ers. 

Western races highlight Thursday NBA betting slate

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

Thursday marks the penultimate day of the very unusual 2019-20 NBA regular season with seven games on the schedule from the Orlando bubble. Frankly, three of the games are completely meaningless and some starters are going to sit out ahead of the playoffs, which will begin on August 17.

Even in the four games that matter, they only do for one of the teams so it’s hard to know how much the team that has nothing to play for will care in terms of playing key guys. What’s at stake Thursday is which teams will earn spots in the Saturday play-in game for the Western Conference’s final seed. The No. 9 seed will play the No. 8 in that; if the eighth seed wins, it earns the final spot. If the ninth seed wins, it plays the eight again the next day in a winner-take-all for the final spot.

Led by the scorching-hot Damian Lillard, the Portland Trail Blazers control their destiny to get into the play-in game as they currently hold the eighth seed. The Blazers face the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday, and the Nets have squat to play for as they are locked into the seventh seed in the East.

NBA restart: Thursday games betting preview

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The key to betting these NBA restart games is all about motivation, and that was never more clear than Tuesday. Both the Brooklyn Nets and Milwaukee Bucks had little to play for in their game with both essentially locked into their playoff positioning in the Eastern Conference.

The Bucks, the team with the NBA’s best record, were 19-point favorites over a Nets team without its top eight players for one reason or another. Brooklyn pulled a 119-116 stunner, the biggest point spread upset in the NBA since Dallas was +19.5 in Seattle and upset the Sonics on April 6, 1993.

So, while Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets on Thursday night (9 p.m. ET) looks like a marquee matchup, the Lakers have absolutely no reason to care because they have wrapped up the top seed in the Western Conference.

The NBA has a gift for basketball gambling fans

If the coronavirus has taught us anything, it’s that it’s never a good idea to become too comfortable or complacent in business. The global economic impact will be felt for years to come, but the fallout will also lead to some positive developments. Sports gambling legalization is gaining more support than ever before, even among some of the most anti-gambling organizations around. A number of major sports organizations had their hand in convincing U.S. lawmakers to pass the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA), but are now having a change of heart. They are now actively embracing sports gambling as a means of recuperating losses from this year’s massive sports stoppage, and the NBA is the latest to get on board. It is launching NBABet Stream, a streaming service that will allow sports gamblers to gain access to data during live games that will help them make their selections. 

NBABet Stream provides broadcast overlays that offer odds, point spreads, betting analysis and more. This is made possible, in part, due to a partnership with MGM Resorts, whose BetMGM sports gambling arm appears as NBABet’s presenting partner. The streaming option made its debut during the Oklahoma City Thunder game last night against the Denver Nuggets, and is available on NBA League Pass, NBA TV and NBA.com. It combines virtual reality to assist with the offering, as well as different camera angles and other options that would not normally be included if fans were allowed to attend games. 

The idea is similar to, but larger than, one implemented by MLB recently. The baseball league brought in Statcast as the season saw its reboot, using augmented reality in all 30 ballparks across the U.S. to give fans at home access to any player on the field. It also shows live flight paths for hits, like what has already been launched in golf tournaments, and is designed to increase at-home fan engagement. 

The NBA was a pioneer in embracing the sports gambling industry, signing an official partnership with sportsbook William Hill in October of last year. That deal gave the sportsbook access to the league’s official data for gambling purposes, and the NBA began promoting William Hill through its website, social media presence and apps. It has also established similar arrangements with Stars Group, Unibet, DraftKings and more. The NBA isn’t alone, and there have been other arrangements created between sportsbooks and the NFL and MLB, as well as between bookmakers and individual teams.

NBA takes top billing in Bodog sports bets this past weekend

The NBA reboot officially got underway last Thursday with two awesome buzzer-beating games. If that’s a prelude of how the NBA Bubble in Orlando will play out, this final run of the 2019-20 season is going to be spectacular. Now that sports fans have more choices than they’ve had in almost five months, sports gambling activity is picking up, as well. In addition to the NBA, both the NHL and MLB are live once again, and international sportsbook Bodog is seeing a lot of action. This past weekend, all three of those leagues led the way in wagers as the numbers continue to rise. 

NBA was a slam dunk with 45.92% of the action. MLB, despite the threats of a season cancelation due to the reappearance of COVID-19, grabbed 28.24% of the bets, with the NHL picking up 7.97%. The presence of the major leagues forced other sports activity down the list, with Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), golf and table tennis delivering to Bodog 4.11%, 3.96% and 2.97%, respectively. In a first since sports resumed, soccer only made one appearance, as Italy’s Serie A received 2.55% of the action. Rounding out the top-ten list, the WNBA squeaked in with just 1.92% of the wagers. 

It’s not too surprising that NBA captured such a large percentage – it’s always a popular option for sports gambling fans. In terms of individual events, NBA games occupied nine of the top ten spots on Bodog, with PGA’s WGC FedEx St. Jude Invitational breaking what would have otherwise been a complete domination of basketball. The game between the LA Lakers and the Toronto Raptors received 14.78% of the wagers on Bodog, with the Raptors handing the LA squad a surprising defeat, 107-92. The Lakers had been seen as the obvious choice for the win, which means anyone who took the Raptors at or about +120 made out well. 

Right behind that game, with 11.3%, was the contest between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Houston Rockets. This game also had a surprise ending when the Rockets pulled ahead to advance with a 120-116 win. Going into the game as the sizeable underdogs, the Rockets shook up the court and showed that the team is definitely still in the running. That was one of two victories for the Rockets – both on the court and at the sportsbook, as the Friday game against the Dallas Mavericks saw the team pick up an overtime win, 153-149, and capture 10.94% of the wagers on Bodog.

NBA Restart: Tuesday games betting preview

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

In the 2018 NBA Draft, the Phoenix Suns took Arizona big man Deandre Ayton at No. 1 overall, which left the Sacramento Kings on the clock at No. 2. They could have taken European teenage superstar Luka Doncic, called by some scouts the best Euro prospect ever, but the Kings opted to take Duke forward Marvin Bagley III.

That would prove to be a huge mistake. Doncic went No. 3 to the Atlanta Hawks and was immediately traded to the Dallas Mavericks (who picked Trae Young fifth and sent Young and a 2019 first-round pick to Atlanta). Doncic already is one of the best players in the league, while Bagley hasn’t been able to stay on the court due to injury.

The Kings are without Bagley for the entire NBA restart due to a right foot sprain as Sacramento chases its first playoff berth since 2006. The Kings face Doncic and the Mavericks at 2:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday from the ESPN World Wide of Sports Complex in the Orlando “bubble”. The Mavs, who have been historically good on offense this season, are 5.5-point favorites.

NBA reboot brings excitement, nail-biting wins

The NBA restarted its 2019-20 season last night after being forced, like all sports leagues, to take an extended break due to the coronavirus pandemic. Sports fans everywhere were glued to their TVs, tablets, computers or whatever device they needed to use to catch the games, and they weren’t disappointed. With the LA Lakers taking on the LA Clippers and the Utah Jazz going up against the New Orleans Pelicans, there was a lot to look forward to, and all players brought their best to give fans a show. 

As expected, all players, coaches and referees took a knee as the National Anthem was being played, with virtually everyone sporting a “Black Lives Matter” t-shirt until after the music stopped. Removing the garments and revealing their usual jerseys, as well as footwear, players had added messages, with the NBA’s approval, to continue driving home the importance of social and racial equity. Among the messages were “Equality;” and “Say her name,” the latter being a reference to Breonna Taylor, a Black emergency medical technician who was fatally shot by police in Kentucky in one of many cases that have caused substantial claims of abuse of force across the country. 

With the statement having been delivered loud and clear, it was time to get the action started. The Lakers-Clippers showdown was always going to be one of the hottest games of the reboot in the NBA Bubble in Orlando, and proved to be everything expected. While both sides were a little rusty at first, they quickly developed a solid rhythm that would force the game to go down to the wire to find a winner. In spectacular fashion, it would come down to an attempt just ahead of the final buzzer.

The lead in the game went back and forth until the very end. The Lakers were up with just under two minutes left when Clippers forward Paul George threatened the lead and narrowed the gap to 99-98. LeBron James responded with a layup, only to have George come back with a three-point shot to tie the game – 29 seconds now remained on the clock. 

NBA restarts with Pelicans, Lakers Thursday favorites

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The NBA’s eight-game regular-season restart features 22 teams all playing at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando during a coronavirus pandemic in the United States. Florida is in the midst of arguably the worst virus surge in the U.S.A, but so far the NBA has gotten good news in terms of positive tests among its players because in theory they are protected in their campus-like “bubble.”

The restart tips off Thursday night with two games, and expect incredibly high betting action and television ratings as NBA fans have gone four months without basketball.

The first game at 6:30 p.m. ET features the Utah Jazz at New Orleans Pelicans, who are 2.5-point favorites. While the word “at” doesn’t really work at a neutral site, it does somewhat matter because the league is going to great effort to make the home team feel like it is at home with some virtual on-site additions for each game (signage, etc.).

NBA restarts with Pelicans, Lakers Thursday favorites

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The NBA’s eight-game regular-season restart features 22 teams all playing at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando during a coronavirus pandemic in the United States. Florida is in the midst of arguably the worst virus surge in the U.S.A, but so far the NBA has gotten good news in terms of positive tests among its players because in theory they are protected in their campus-like “bubble.”

The restart tips off Thursday night with two games, and expect incredibly high betting action and television ratings as NBA fans have gone four months without basketball.

The first game at 6:30 p.m. ET features the Utah Jazz at New Orleans Pelicans, who are 2.5-point favorites. While the word “at” doesn’t really work at a neutral site, it does somewhat matter because the league is going to great effort to make the home team feel like it is at home with some virtual on-site additions for each game (signage, etc.).

Basketball fans should be prepared for another bubble next season

MLB got off to a rocky start as it started the season and one team, the Miami Marlins, has already been forced to put its games on hold. The NBA and the NHL are almost ready to get their season restarts underway, and both will be operating inside a virtual bubble meant to protect players and staffers. The quickness with which the Marlins saw COVID-19 spread – at least 17 players have now tested positive in less than a week – shows how little control there is over the virus. There exists the possibility that holding sports seasons inside a bubble may extend beyond the current activity, and the executive director of the NBA is more than prepared to see the bubble make a return for the 2020-21 season. 

Michelle Roberts of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) connected with Tim Bontemps of ESPN to talk about what’s going on in the world of sports as the NBA gets ready to restart its season this week. She feels that there is a good chance the entire next season could play out inside a virtual bubble if the coronavirus isn’t conquered by this December, explaining, “If tomorrow looks like today, I don’t know how we say we can do it differently. If tomorrow looks like today, and today we all acknowledge — and this is not Michele talking, this is the league, together with the PA and our respective experts saying, ‘This is the way to do it’ — then that’s going to have to be the way to do it.”

Since the NBA reboot hasn’t started yet, it isn’t possible to say whether or not the bubble strategy works – sports fans will find out starting tomorrow when the Utah Jazz take on the New Orleans Pelicans and the LA Clippers battle it out with the LA Lakers. Give things a couple of days for test results to come back, and the sports world will know how effective the NBA’s strategy is. 

The good news is that no NBA player, since teams descended on Orlando, has tested positive for the coronavirus, which could indicate that the bubble idea is working. However, as the MLB launch showed, it doesn’t take much for a spike to be seen, despite strict health measures being implemented. Since the NBA is working only with a 22-team league for the playoffs, it has been much more manageable, and things could be completely different if the entire season and all 30 teams were to be included. 

FanDuel Sportsbook Spreads The Love As NBA Tips Off

credit: Keith Allison

Opening night of the Battle in the Bubble will feature the Lakers and Clippers facing off for a pivotal win, and FanDuel Sportsbook is giving customers a chance to get an even bigger win when a legal sports bet is placed on the game. Today, FanDuel Sportsbook, a division of FanDuel Group, will once again bring its innovative Spread the Love ™ promotion to customers to celebrate the return of the NBA on TNT.

For every 2,500 customers who bet on the Lakers in the special Spread the Love Market, FanDuel will move the spread one point in the Lakers favor. There’s no limit to how good this line can get and the line won’t stop increasing until fans stop betting, or the game tips off. New and current customers can place a bet in the special Spread the Love Market to qualify and no matter what spread the bet is placed on – every wager placed in the market will receive the final spread.

“Spread the Love is one of our signature promotions and it’s exciting to watch the line move throughout the day, especially for such an important game on the first night of NBA action returning,” said Mike Raffensperger, CMO of FanDuel Group. “There is no limit to how good this spread can get and it doesn’t matter what line you have when you place a wager, everyone will get the final spread.”

The Lakers spread will begin the day at -4 with odds at -110. Max bet is $50. Spread the Love promotional spreads were introduced into the legal sports betting market by FanDuel in 2019. The Indianapolis Colts wound up with a +51 spread against the Saints last December and the 76ers point spread closed at +59.5 against the Bucks earlier this year.

The FanDuel Sportsbook is available for download today in iOS and Android. To track the line movement throughout the day, follow @FDSportsbook on Twitter.

NBA’s Timberwolves soon might have a new owner as potential sale looms

Glen Taylor purchased the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves in 1994 from the team’s original owners, Harvey Ratner and Marv Wolfenson. Things had gotten off to a slow start and the duo had begun to look at relocating the team to New Orleans before the league axed the deal. That led to Taylor, a former senator and owner of the Star Tribune media outlet, stepping in and buying the franchise. He is apparently ready to move on, after 26 years, and there is talk of the T-Wolves being sold to someone else. There aren’t many details available yet about a potential sale, except that it could include a former player that put the team on the NBA map.

In 1995, only a year after Taylor took control of the T-Wolves, Kevin Garnett was selected fifth in the first round, right out of high school. Within two years, the power forward was averaging 18.5 points a game and, in 1997, the team logged its first winning season and made its second playoff appearance. While wearing the Timberwolves jersey from 1995-2007 and again from 2015-2016, Garnett would pick up a league MVP award, an All-Star MVP award, several All-Star appearances (seven in a row from 2000 to his departure), the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award and much more.

Now, Garnett, who retired as a player in 2016, could be coming back to his old haunting grounds as its owner. The NBA reports that he is part of a group that is discussing a potential purchase of the team with Taylor, who will reportedly “entertain opportunities” to make a sale. He explained in a tweet, “I was recently approached by the Raine Group to discuss the future of our franchise. From the time I bought the team in 1994, I have always wanted what’s best for our fans and will entertain opportunities on the evolution of the Timberwolves and Lynx ownership structure.” The reference to Lynx is about the female basketball team he owns, and which plays in the WNBA.

One of the conditions of any purchase will be that the team remain in Minnesota, something Garnett is apparently on board with. He said on Twitter yesterday, even before Taylor published his own tweet about the sale, “My passion for the Minnesota Timberwolves to be a championship team is well known but I have a deeper affection for the city of Minneapolis. I once again want to see Minneapolis as the diverse and loving community that I know it is.”

NBA conference championship odds update

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

On the night of March 11, MVP candidate LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers were the betting favorites to win the NBA’s Western Conference title, and MVP favorite Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks were favored to come out of the East. Things haven’t changed, with the Lakers at +135 to win the West and the Bucks -185 in the East.

Yet, of course, everything has changed since that March night as when Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for the coronavirus, the NBA immediately shut down and every other North American sports league followed suit.

While the 2020 NBA postseason will feature the standard eight teams from each conference, the playoffs will be unlike any in history. Every game will be at a neutral site from the ESPN World Wide of Sports Complex in Orlando, thus no home-court advantage for anyone, and it’s simply a fact that teams are going to lose players because they have tested positive for COVID-19 – in addition, some players already voluntarily opted-out of the rest of the season.

Spurs Star Patty Mills makes huge donation to BLM

Spurs point guard Patty Mills has made the bold decision to donate his entire NBA salary to the Black Lives Matter movement in Australia. The Australian guard is putting his money where his mouth is, and donating the entire salary from the remaining eight games in Florida to social justice causes in Australia. Mills will donate $1.45 million to the Black Deaths in Custody and The We Got You campaign.

When allies who stand up and speak out against racism, although a small gesture, this is one of many actions that have a tremendous impact on the person being targeted because they feel the support. It can also make whoever racially vilifies that person reconsider own behavior. pic.twitter.com/MqH3Fc1CqX

— Patrick Mills (@Patty_Mills) July 7, 2020https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Mills has been an outspoken ambassador for social justice issues in Aboriginal communities in Australia.

NBA could be preparing a second bubble for losing teams

As the NBA inches toward a possible season-ending NBA Finals bubble in Orlando, 22 teams are set to make the trip. The games are expected to start at the end of this month, but a resurgence of coronavirus cases is now forcing the basketball league to keep an open mind. For the eight teams that were kept out of the bubble, they might be offered a consolation prize. The NBA is reportedly considering a second bubble for these teams, which might be held in Chicago, Illinois.

The rumors aren’t backed by any concrete announcements, and there isn’t much to go on yet. It isn’t clear what the purpose of the games would be, when it would start (although September has been mentioned) or how the bubble may look. The structure would apparently include mini-training camps and competitive games, but the rewards, whatever they may be, probably won’t be enough to convince the outside teams to make the trip.

The NBA has already begun to report new COVID-19 cases among some of its players, and a handful have decided they don’t want to make the trip to Orlando. With that being the case, the eight teams that would play in the Chicago bubble have no real reason to participate, which would mean putting their players at risk for no tangible rewards. The only supporting motivation the league has offered so far is the assertion that the second bubble would give the teams a chance to recuperate some of the lost revenue caused by the season shutdown, but that revenue probably isn’t worth it compared to the possibility of losing multimillion-dollar players to a bug.

For the Orlando bubble, concerns are mounting, and more players are likely to decide to call off participation. Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers has had his eyes opened and told reporters this week that he doesn’t believe players will adhere to the NBA’s lockdown rules while at Walt Disney. He asserted, “My confidence ain’t great. My confidence ain’t great because you’re telling me you’re gonna have 22 teams full of players following all the rules? When we have 100 percent freedom, everybody don’t follow all the rules. I don’t have much confidence.”

The NBA is keeping a season cancellation on the table

The NBA is ready to finish out the season, operating inside a “bubble” at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. The professional basketball league figured out, at the beginning of last month, what was needed to ensure a safe and secure environment for players and staff, and started working on a plan that would see the NBA Finals get going at the end of this month. However, with different areas across the US, and even the league, now witnessing a resurgence in the coronavirus, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is keeping his thumb on the big red button that would bring everything to a grinding halt once again. 

Silver and the rest of the NBA are still optimistic that everything will be able to move forward as projected. However, he told TIME 100 Talks yesterday that the season could be canceled if necessary. He explained, “If cases are isolated, that’s one thing. But if we had a lot of cases, we’re going to stop.” The commissioner’s comments echoed similar remarks he made last week when he asserted, “The level of concern has increased, not just because of the increased levels in Florida, but throughout the country.”

In addition to new waves of COVID-19 seen in Florida, Nevada, California and elsewhere, a number of NBA players have tested positive for the virus. So far, at least 13 players have decided that they don’t want to make the trip to Orlando, although not all of them are backing out due to the coronavirus. Some are dealing with previous injuries or personal preferences, such as wanting to spend time with family. 

Silver adds, “Never full steam ahead no matter what. One thing we are learning about this virus is much [is] unpredictable, and we and our players, together with their union, look at the data on a daily basis. If there were something to change that was outside of the scope of what we are playing for, certainly we would revisit our plans. We are testing daily. We haven’t put a precise number on it, but, if we were to see a large number of cases and see spread in our community, that would, of course, be a cause to stop, as well.”