While 22 of the 30 NBA teams will be heading to Orlando this month to complete the regular season and playoffs in a bubble meant to protect against the spread of coronavirus, the league will reportedly also set up a second camp in Chicago for the remaining eight teams. The purpose of this second bubble is to allow those teams to host mini-camps and play games against each other, according to ESPN.
The teams that would involved in this secondary camp are the eight that were deemed too far from potential post-season contention to receive an invite to Orlando: the Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Golden State Warriors, Minnesota Timberwolves and the New York Knicks. According to one general manager of one of these teams, it’s less about how the bubble comes into play and more about getting “our young guys out there working with some game simulation.”
However, some teams are reportedly not as interested in the bubble as they would be in being allowed to host their own mini-camps. According to the ESPN report, Detroit Pistons head coach Dwane Casey says he took a straw poll of other coaches involved, and said that the majority would prefer to explore that route:
The reason we want these mini-camps is to get our team together, to have that camaraderie, to improve and enjoy some competition. We feel we can do that safely in our own environment. We can’t let these guys sit around from March 11 to December without something. It’s going to hurt their careers. It’s too long of a layoff.
However, the NBA and National Basketball Players Association president Michele Roberts both agree that those teams should be under the same restrictions as the teams in Orlando, with Roberts calling it an issue of fairness. So, for now, the league’s plan would be to impose the same daily testing and strict quarantine requirements on the eight teams that didn’t make the cut.
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