If the latest news about the draft is any indication, the NBA’s stated hopes from earlier in the year of starting the 2020-21 season in December will probably need an adjustment. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Wednesday that it’s very likely the NBA will move their draft back a month to November 18.
The draft had originally been scheduled to start only a few days after the end of the NBA Finals in October. Now teams, and the league, will have more time to have a clearer picture of the league’s financial projections. Given the pandemic and the inability for teams to have fans in arenas, having more time to figure that out works out well for the teams trying to plan their seasons and the league as a whole.
A significant part of why teams wanted that draft pushed back — in this case, likely a month to November 18 — was to allow the NBA and NBPA more time to negotiate the new salary cap numbers for 2020-2021. Teams need those figures to be able to conduct trades around the draft.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 9, 2020
The Los Angeles Lakers will have the 28th pick in the first round of the 2020 NBA Draft, whenever the draft eventually does happen.
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