Reports claim as few as three NBA teams are planning to allow players into team facilities on Friday
Thursday 7 May 2020 07:17, UK
NBA teams are expected to get the go-ahead to reopen practice facilities for limited use as early as Friday, less than two months after the coronavirus outbreak forced the suspension of the season.
With head and assistant coaches barred and scrimmages forbidden, the workouts are unlikely to resemble business as usual for the NBA but would nonetheless be a step towards normalcy for a league whose season was upended in dramatic fashion in March.
Players will be required to wear face masks inside team facilities, "except during the period when they are engaged in physical activity," according to a league memo.
Teams must also thoroughly disinfect any equipment used, from basketballs to weight-room equipment.
Modifications to stay-at-home orders could play a factor in which teams can resume workouts, with some US states reopening and others maintaining strict social distancing procedures.
As few as three NBA teams are reportedly planning to allow players into team facilities on Friday.
USA Today reported the Denver Nuggets, Portland Trail Blazers and Houston Rockets are the only franchises certain to open facilities to players this week, and the Cleveland Cavaliers later confirmed they will join that group.
While "maybe another team or two" may open facilities for players on Friday, others are more than three weeks from hosting players for individual workouts, including the Golden State Warriors, according to the USA Today report.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver and National Basketball Players Association executive director Michele Roberts will hold a call for all players on Friday to discuss the plans, according to ESPN.
Players will be allowed to ask any questions they have about the state of the league amid the coronavirus pandemic.
With much of the professional sports calendar on hold, many leagues across North America are considering whether and how their seasons could resume.
Major League Soccer returned to training on Wednesday with strict rules in place, while NASCAR plans to resume competition on May 17 without fans.
The NBA was among the first to see its season impacted by the coronavirus outbreak, with games called off at the last minute after a Utah Jazz player tested positive for the coronavirus in March.
