The NBA world is on hold for the foreseeable future in the wake of the spread of the coronavirus and that is creating an unprecedented period of stoppage as the world tends to far bigger things.
The resumption of the full NBA season is an eventual hope right now according to commissioner Adam Silver but it can’t be considered more than a hope given the seriousness of the situation at hand and the worry that the worst out of the outbreak is yet to come.
All of that will put the NBA on a very reduced schedule timetable if league play is cleared to resume during the 2019-20 season and that will require some creative outlets in terms of how the league is going to continue its offseason. A closer look at one idea the league had introduced earlier this season and could put into motion for an abbreviated season.
Play-in postseason tournament
If the NBA is not going to play a full regular-season schedule (unlikely even under the best-case scenario of coronavirus containment), this is one way to give every team in the hunt a fair chance to qualify for the postseason in the absence of a full schedule.
The format of said tournament would be a tricky proposition if it is based on the current standings to some degree. Essentially, 13 of the 16 postseason spots are locked up now by the top six seeds in the East and top seven seeds in the West having a close to an insurmountable seven-plus game leads on the sub .500 squads duking it out for the bottom spots in each conference.
The race in the East bottom two spots is less than competitive than the West for the moment. Orlando and Brooklyn both hold at least a five-game lead on the ninth-seeded Wizards. Washington closing that gap in 18 games is not exactly impossible but the odds would make It a long shot over the course of 82 games. Forcing Brooklyn and Orlando to play their way into the postseason via a single-elimination tourney with such a giant advantage in the standings doesn’t necessarily feel like a fair move so the case could simply be made in the East to go with the eight teams as things currently stand if there are no more regular-season games played. Otherwise, some type of four-team tournament for the final two spots would be a possible alternative with No. 7 Brooklyn facing No. 10 Charlotte and No. 8 Orlando hosting the No. 9 Wizards to settle the final two spots.
Elsewhere in the East, the tightness of the standings in the 3-6 spots may present the need for some creative tiebreaker procedures to settle potential seeding inequities. For instance, the Pacers and Sixers are tied for the No. 5 seed with Indiana holding a 2-1 lead in the season series. One game is left looming on the schedule in Philadelphia between the two squads so how would the NBA handle that if no more regular-season games are played? Would one game be held between those two squads to settle who gets the higher seed? Or would the Pacers simply earn it based on the current tiebreaker procedures since three head-to-head games (a decent sample) have been played? Parameters would need to be agreed upon in both conferences before a return to play to settle these types of questions.
While a postseason play-in tournament may not be necessary in the East given the state of the playoff chase, a strong case for one can be made for the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference with four teams within four games of the eighth-seeded Grizzlies with 18 games remaining on the regular-season calendar.
Memphis is certainly the favorite to hold onto that spot but it has one of the toughest schedules remaining in the NBA, opening the door to one of these squads to overtake the No. 8 spot, particularly with many head-to-head matchups looming with Memphis and those in the chase. Memphis deserves an advantage perhaps to incorporate some of their three-game lead into a single-elimination format beyond perhaps home-court advantage. One solution could be having a single-elimination tournament on a neutral court between the teams in the 9-12 slots (Portland, San Antonio, Sacramento, New Orleans) with the winner having the right to face Memphis for the No. 8 spot in a winner-take-all matchup. If that is too big of an advantage for the Grizzlies, perhaps some kind of three-game series for the finals of the tournament (with Memphis getting an early-round bye), if it’s expanded to include the Grizzlies, would be a reasonable compromise.
All of these variations options would not be the standard in the long run, instead just short-term fixes to create a level playing field while incorporating the results of the first 65 games of the season into the eventual playoff field. However, for a league that sounded very intrigued about the prospect of a play-in tournament earlier this season, this summer could be an opportunity for a valuable test balloon of this format to help determine whether it makes sense for the long run.
Third NBA Player tests positive
ESPN was first to report on Saturday evening that Pistons big man Christian Wood was the third player in the NBA to test positive for the coronavirus.
Detroit faced the Utah Jazz on March 7 in Detroit, one night after the Jazz faced the Celtics. Wood scored 30 points in that matchup and matched up with Gobert for the majority of that contest with both players playing predominantly at the center spot. Gobert and Wood were also involved in an altercation during the Jazz win.
The Celtics were expected to be tested by the team training staff on Saturday but it’s evident those results will be watched more closely now with Wood potentially receiving the virus after his interactions with Gobert or Mitchell several days before both players had positive tests. Wood was listed as having flu-like symptoms last week but ended up playing on Wednesday night against the Sixers, scoring a game-high 32 points in a Pistons’ loss to the Sixers.
Don’t look for the NBA to allow any kind of full team activities for at least the next 14 days while players remain in quarantine.
Other NBA News and Notes
—Excellent to see so many players and teams step up so far to help support part-time arena workers during the work stoppage for work missed. I’m told the Celtics and Bruins are expected to release a joint statement soon announcing a plan to support Garden workers as well. In the meantime, Rudy Gobert, Giannis Antetokokunmpo, Kevin Love, Zion Williamson and Blake Griffin have all stepped up with six-figure donations to help take the onus off these employees during their time of need.
—J.B. Bickerstaff was given an extension through the next three seasons this week after holding the interim coach tag in Cleveland for a couple of weeks after the resignation of John Beilein. Bickerstaff had been a finalist for the gig before Beilein was hired.
—Mavs guard Jalen Brunson underwent shoulder surgery this week, a procedure he had planned on pushing off until the offseason but now can afford an extra month of rehab (at least) to have him ready for game action when the NBA returns. It will be interesting to see whether more players opt for minor procedures like that when needed if the suspension drags on far longer into the summer.
—Very cool potential close to Vince Carter’s career on Wednesday night if the NBA regular season is over. Good job by the Knicks to let him get the clean shot up in what may have been the final game of his Hall of Fame run.
With the NBA season suspended until further notice, Vince Carter checks in and drills a three in the final seconds. pic.twitter.com/XLW1t7uIjW
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) March 12, 2020
