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There’s nothing official, but various NBA writers report the NBA is planning a “bubble” outside Atlanta for an abbreviated G League season, starting in late January and ending a little more than a month later. Details are still sketchy, but at least three reporters have laid out the basic outline...
One of the major challenges for the viability of any G League proposal, of course, is the likelihood that players on two-way contracts might be needed by their NBA teams for much or perhaps even all of the NBA season as teams brace for the impact of COVID-19 cases on rosters
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) November 27, 2020
Then Sunday, Adam Johnson, who covers the G League, provided more details...
Length of proposed G League bubble schedule is 12 games per multiple sources, with the hope of more games being added, possibly in the 15-16 game range.
— Adam Johnson (@realcommonname) November 29, 2020
To clarify:
— Adam Johnson (@realcommonname) November 29, 2020
● 1 month bubble “season” for G League, in Atantla w/ $500,000 entry fee.
● Daily Covid Testing and quarantine period for players.
● 12 game season minimum, with potential increase to 15-16 games with playoffs also.
● Start date TBD but likely late January
Adam Zagoria, the New York writer who covers college and pro basketball, added additional information...
Have heard similar on the G League proposal from multiple league sources:
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) November 29, 2020
--NBA G League season roughly mid-January to early-March followed by playoffs
--Teams can opt-in or opt-on. Entry fee would be $500K
--Games in a bubble in College Park, Ga. https://t.co/AhATCap2V9
The “bubble” would presumably be located at the Gateway Center Arena at the Georgia International Convention Center in College Park, a suburb of Atlanta. It’s home of both the Hawks G League affiliate College Park Skyhawks and the WNBA’s Atlanta Dream.
The facility, opened only last year, is an ideal location. It sits next to Atlanta’s Hartsfield International Airport, the busiest airport in the world with easy connections to all the NBA’s cities. The convention center even has a stop on the Atlanta transit system linking it directly to the airport, further easing concerns about travel for two-way players.
The season, with 15 or 16 games, would be considerably shorter than a conventional G League affair which is normally 50 games long. So the question is how many of the 26 NBA teams with G League affiliates will agree to field teams in College Park. (Team Ignite, the Nets’ select development team whose roster is filled with top young players from the U.S. and overseas, will participate, Johnson reported.)
For the Nets, it’s hard to imagine they wouldn’t pay the entry fee. Just last week, Sharif Abdur-Rahim, president of the the G League, told the Long Island Nets podcast that the league relies on Brooklyn to be a leader. The Nets already have four players ready for the G League: two-ways Jeremiah Martin and Reggie Perry plus two training camp invites bound for Long Island — Jordan Bowden, a 6’5” shooting guard out of Tennessee, and Nate Sestina, a 6’9” stretch 4 who played for Kentucky and Bucknell.
Playing in the bubble would also resolve an issue for the Nets. Their home arena, Nassau Coliseum, is currently shuttered and there’s not specific date for it to be reopened, although Laura Curran, the Nassau County executive, said she believes the arena will be ready should the Long Island Nets need it.