About two hours before the NBA tipped off its 2019-20 season restart from Orlando, Commissioner Adam Silver published an open letter to the league’s fans on NBA.com
Beginning with the Utah Jazz and the New Orleans Pelicans, the league will play a regular-season game for the first time since March 11 — the day that Rudy Gobert became the first player to be known to have contracted the coronavirus.
Since then, after hundreds of hours of planning and preparation, the league eventually hatched out the details of the vision of the “bubble,” — the vision that has since become reality.
With the league announcing that zero players within the bubble have tested positive for COVID-19 as of July 29, the NBA will begin its resumption feeling good about its chances to conduct its experiment while maintaining the health of its workforce.
Silver’s open letter has been reproduced in part below:
It’s been more than four months since we last played NBA basketball. Tonight we restart the season with 22 teams in Orlando and attempt to establish our new normal. And while spectators won’t be there in person, fans remain at the heart of our game.
We’re introducing several elements to improve the live game viewing experience, including multiple, new camera angles, enhanced audio of players and coaches, a feature on our NBA app that allows for virtual crowd reactions, customized alternative streams on NBA League Pass with statistical overlays and influencers calling the action, and video boards surrounding the court featuring hundreds of fans watching from home.
At the same time, we recognize that this moment is about more than basketball. It’s an opportunity for NBA players and teams to continue a longstanding tradition of addressing important issues around social justice.
These are difficult and challenging times, but the NBA is coming back because sports matter in society. We hope that the return of the NBA – along with other major league sports – will enrich your lives.
Welcome to a whole new game!
Following the contest between the Jazz and Pelicans, the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers will renew their rivalry. On Friday, the league will feature six more contests before the Thunder play their first game of the resumption on Saturday. They will square off against the Utah Jazz at 3:30 p.m. ET.