One of LA’s biggest red flags this year is home/road splits, as the team has gone 26-7 at the Staples Center (a record that includes one ‘road’ game against the Lakers) and just 18-13 away from it. This squad was prone to bouts of disjointed and inconsistent play, however, and could be impacted more than others by the long layoff and neutral venue that will host the postseason. The season will resume on July 30, with what the league described in a press release as "stringent health and safety protocols." It is widely considered to be the premier men's professional basketball league in the world. Giannis Antetokounmpo, the odds-on favorite to capture his second straight NBA MVP Award, has been having a monster year, averaging 29.6 points, 13.7 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1 block and 1 steal while averaging just 30.9 minutes per game. "We have worked together with the Players Association to establish a restart plan that prioritizes health and safety, preserves competitive fairness and provides a platform to address social justice issues," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in the release. "We are grateful to our longtime collaborator Disney for its role in playing host and making this return to play possible, and we also thank the public health officials and infectious disease specialists who helped guide the creation of comprehensive medical protocols and protections." Isaias heads toward Florida's coast amid coronavirus fightPelosi calls relief package discussions "productive" but no dealKey impeachment inquiry witness: Nation's values are threatenedDHS official reassigned after office compiled intel on journalistsAirbnb shuts down dozens of NJ properties after large partiesApple Fire in Southern California prompts home evacuationsMLB commissioner confident league will get through seasonNationwide salmonella outbreak linked to red onionsBattleground Tracker: Latest polls, state of the race and more5 things to know about CBS News' 2020 Battleground TrackerBattleground Tracker: COVID reshapes presidential race in Sun BeltDNC hopes to reach more voters with new voter file model 7 or No. Brooklyn has since started trending back towards being a massive longshot, however, after Durant claimed that his season was officially over due to the Achilles injury suffered in last year’s Finals, while Irving said he won’t be making the trip to Florida for any reason but to support his teammates. Giannis improved as a three-point shooter during the 2019-2020 season as well, canning 1.5 treys on 4.8 attempts per game, both career highs. 8 seed. If the eighth team in each conference is more than four games ahead of the ninth, it will be the eighth seed — if not, the two teams will face off in a play-in tournament to determine the eighth seed on August 15 or 16. The restart of the 2020 NBA regular season will be a 16-day affair beginning on July 31, with five to six games played per day during that span and each team playing one back-to-back. All series will still be best-of-sevens, but the league plans to condense the postseason as much as possible by moving up start dates for each round based on when the previous one ends. The Milwaukee Bucks are a close third on the list of contenders at +300, giving them the best odds of any team in the Eastern Conference. 8 seed—return to action for a brief, eight-game finish to the regular season, plus a potential play-in tournament to determine the last seed in each conference.
Although it has not been officially announced, here is how the 2020 NBA season schedule should look for the seeding games based on the league’s plan:The lottery will involve the usual 14 teams that do not make the postseason, although it will be based on the standings from March 11, the final day of the 2019-2020 season prior to the shutdown. Between all NBA teams, a total of 1230 games played during the regular season. Four teams—the Trail Blazers, Heat, Magic and Lakers—will not be able to reach eight games this way, so it is presumed that they will match up with one another to reach that number. Twenty-two teams will participate in the season restart: the eight teams in each conference with the highest current winning percentages, and the six teams that are currently within six games of the eighth-seed team in each conference.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FL - MARCH 03: A general view of the ESPN Wide World of Sports entrance. The team was on a tear before the shutdown, going 7-1 over the final eight games.
Before diving into the odds for each team to win the 2020 NBA Finals—which were recently updated by bookies after the league’s announcement—take a look at the full overview for the restart of the 2019-2020 NBA season, which includes the complete schedule, participants, draft lottery information and more.
The Nets were by far the biggest movers during the suspension, jumping from 750-1 to win the 2020 NBA Finals all the way up to 60-1 at some shops. The league also noted that "the goal of the season restart" is to "find tangible and sustainable ways to address racial inequality across the country." While three teams stand above the rest in terms of their odds, the chances of an underdog breaking through are better than ever. The organization was on its way to earning a No. I'm now combining both of these experiences together to come up with some great content for you to enjoy at Forbes!Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. This is all scheduled to take place at the ESPN World Wide of Sports Complex, located within Disney World in Orlando, Florida, with training camps slated to start at the end of June and the regular season beginning on July 31. The National Basketball Association (NBA) is an American men's professional basketball league.
Due to Giannis’ further improvement and an elite supporting cast, Milwaukee was an NBA-best 53-12 prior to the shutdown and was well on pace to surpass the 60 wins the franchise tallied up last year, a campaign in which they took the eventual champion Raptors to six games in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Those teams would match up in a series where the stronger record side would need just one win to secure their position in the 2020 NBA Playoffs, while the lower team would have to win two games in a row to usurp the spot.