Report: NBA Closing In On Second ‘Bubble’ In Chicago For 8 Teams Not Going To Orlando
Jul 2, 2020, 3:27 PM | Updated: Apr 26, 2021, 3:35 pm
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The NBA is working on a second “bubble” for the 8 teams that didn’t qualify for the NBA restart in Orlando to still be able to play meaningful games.
According to ESPN’s Jackie MacMullan, the NBA is targeting Chicago to host the 8 teams that won’t make the Orlando trip.
Those 8 teams did not qualify for Orlando because they were too far behind the 8th seed in their conference and would not have a chance to snatch a playoff spot.
The NBA is closing in on signing off on a second “bubble” in Chicago for the eight teams that were not invited to play in Orlando, enabling mini-training camps and subsequent games against other clubs with a target date of September, sources tell ESPN’s Jackie MacMullan.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 2, 2020
According to MacMullan, the NBA would give the eight teams a mini-training camp along with games with other 7 teams in the bubble. They are targeting September to start that season.
The eight teams that would be included in this second bubble is the Charlotte Hornets, Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, Detroit Pistons, Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers from the Eastern Conference. In the Western Conference, those teams include the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Golden State Warriors.
The NBA restart will begin on July 30 in Orlando when the Utah Jazz take on the New Orleans Pelicans at 4:30 p.m. on TNT and AT&T SportsNet. Each team in Orlando will play 8 regular season games before the start of the postseason.