The NBA is officially returning on July 31, and the world is rejoicing. After shutting down in March earlier this year because of a global coronavirus pandemic, the league owners and the association devised a plan to bring the game back.

We will be able to see 22 out of 30 teams, which consists of the 16 current playoff teams and the six other teams within games of their No. 8 seeds. The return has an eight-game finish along with a prospective play-in tournament, which will identify the last seeds in each conference for 2020.

The NBA game is scheduled to be held at the ESPN World Wide of Sports Complex that is located within Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Meanwhile, the sportsbooks and betters are elated with the comeback of NBA season as the drought of sports is nearing its end. 

That being said, the NBA season of 2020-21 is officially set to start from December 1, 2020.

Before betting your odds for teams, here is an overview of what to expect from the 2020-21 NBA Tournaments. 

How is the NBA working everything out?

Like the rest of the world at the moment, the NBA itself will be following mandatory social distancing requirements when the games are not on. Although Disney World Park is open, the organization states that there will be no attendees for any of the games. 

The NBA has worked with contagious disease specialists, public health experts, and national officials to develop a strategy that will help them to curb the risk of coronavirus. Some strategic methods include regular testing and rigorous safety practices. 

As the players have already gathered at the venue, they are taught to adapt to new rules that require them to practice the demands of the ongoing crisis. Meanwhile, an FAQ answered by NBA.com concerning the playoff seeding confirms that the playoffs will be taking place as usual, 

“The seven teams in each conference with the best records (regular-season games + seeding games) will have clinched a playoff spot. The usual tie-breaker scenarios will be in place for those seeds. The eighth seed could potentially come down to a play-in tournament.”

In case of a play-in tournament, the NBA claims that if a team with its 8th best record in its conference is ahead by more than four games than the 9th best record from the same conference, then there will be no need for a play-in tournament. The 8th best record team will simply take the final playoff berth. 

Conversely, in case of similar circumstances except the 8th best record team is behind by four or fewer games, then a play-in battle will decide who takes the final spot. The tournament is a simple best-out-of-two series, where the No. 9 seed has to win matchups to conquer over the No. 8 spot. 

Summing it up

The NBA is playing across three different venues on the Wide World Campus. These fields include The HP Field House, Visa Athletic Center, and The Arena. 

While you may not be able to watch it in real life with the crowd wearing colorful merchandise and cheering with foam fingers. But Disney owned ABC and ESPN never fail to disappoint. They will be broadcasting the NBA Finals as earlier announced by ESPN that they will turn into an exclusive TV network for the 2020 Eastern Conference Finals. 

Besides these, several other platforms like NBA TV and TNT will also be broadcasting. TNT, which run by AT&T owned Turner Sports has announced itself as the exclusive TV network for the 2020 Western Conference Finals.

Moreover, keep track of television schedules soon going up on regional sports networks such as FOX Sports, Yes Network, and Spectrum SportsNet. 

League Pass members can catch up on all the broadcasting through a TV provider or online platforms as the season resumes. Those paying till March every month will be billed a day before the NBA 2020 restart again.

Even though the NBA is resuming, and you are beyond delighted, do not forget to practice social distancing to help curb the crisis faster. Nevertheless, now is the time to get your hands on the best foam fingers and start practicing your cheer, and while we’re at it, better luck next time Knicks!