Report: NBA Families May Be Able To Travel To Bubble City

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – A limited number of family members may be allowed within the NBA’s long-rumored bubble cities. That according to a report from ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne. Families are just one issue facing the NBA as it hopes to return to action this season. Reports of a bubble city or campus at the Disney World Resorts in Orlando continue to gain traction. However, extended time away from family has been a sticking point for some NBA players. Utah Jazz forward Joe Ingles expresses his concerns early in the NBA’s hiatus.

“It would be extremely hard,” Ingles said of the idea. “It would be basically the longest I’ve been away from the kids. I don’t know how much I am willing to do that, as much as I love playing basketball.”

"It would be extremely hard, it would be the longest I've been away from the kids."

Joe Ingles on the idea of playing the remainder of the season in the "bubble" scenario where all NBA teams would travel to one city to finish the year.

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) April 24, 2020

Ingles is the father of twin four-year-olds and has another son on the way.

Accordingly, family members welcomed to the bubble city would have to undergo the same restrictions as the league’s players.

“Family members would be subjected to the same safety and coronavirus testing,” sources told ESPN.

Limited Number Of Teams Returning

With families traveling, the NBA may look elsewhere to limit the number of people within the bubble. In the same article, ESPN reported that a growing number of franchises believe their season might be over.

Reporting with @RamonaShelburne: The NBA and NBPA are progressing on a plan that would allow for a limited number of family members to eventually join players for the season's resumption inside an Orlando bubble environment. https://t.co/sudLMPGdPm

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 27, 2020

Though several teams in the NBA still have a slight statistical chance of making the postseason, most recognize their playoff hopes are gone. Unless the NBA were to host a full 30 team play-in tournament, some teams may sit out the league’s return.

This week, the New York Times reported roughly 35 members from each team would be welcome to the bubble city. By cutting the number of teams by 10 that traveled to Orlando, the NBA could reduce the daily testing demand of the league. Those tests could be used for family members traveling to the city.

Bubble Cities To Form In July Or August

A clearer picture is beginning to form as to when the NBA might create its bubble city. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, teams could begin traveling in July.

Sources: The NBA is working on multi-phase medical/safety protocols toward restart of play. Current projections have in-market training camps in July, then camps/scrimmages in Orlando, then resume play late July/early August.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) May 27, 2020

According to the tweet, teams could begin their own training camps in July. Then, teams would travel to Orlando for more training, before restarting the season.