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The NBA and the NBPA announced Friday that they have finalized a comprehensive plan for a July 30 restart to the 2019-20 season at a single-site campus at the Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Florida.
The NBA and the NBPA confirmed an agreement on health and safety protocols that will govern the resumption of the season. The rigorous program, which addresses risks related to COVID-19 and focuses on the well-being of players, coaches, officials and staff, was developed in consultation with public health experts, infectious disease specialists and government officials.
Additionally, the NBA and the NBPA have agreed in principle that the goal of the season restart will be to find tangible and sustainable ways to address racial inequality across the country. In recognition that long-term change can only come from an informed and sustained commitment, conversations regarding these efforts will continue and additional details will be released at a later date.
Under the competitive format for the restart, the 22 participating teams will be 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 in either conference. The restart will begin with each participating team playing eight “seeding games,” as selected from its remaining regular-season matchups.
The complete game and national TV schedules for the seeding games will be announced on Friday night.
🏀 22 Total Teams.
🏀 13 Western Conference Teams.
🏀 9 Eastern Conference Teams.
🏀 8 Seeding Games Per Team. pic.twitter.com/KRntVNclGx— NBA (@NBA) June 26, 2020
Following the seeding games, the seven teams with the highest winning percentage will qualify for the postseason. If the team in eighth place is more than four games ahead of the team in ninth place, the eighth-placed team will earn the playoff berth. If the team in ninth place is within four games, those two teams would compete in a play-in tournament for the eighth seed in the playoffs.
The play-in tournament will be double elimination for the eighth-placed team and single elimination for the ninth-placed team.
Play-In Tournament Format pic.twitter.com/SOL5DgXBec
— NBA (@NBA) June 26, 2020
On Friday, the NBA also announced that in tests conducted of 302 players, 16 players have tested positive for the coronavirus. Those who tested positive will remain in self-isolation until he satisfies public health protocols for discontinuing isolation and has been cleared by a physician.
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