Report: NBA Teams Will Open Facilities For Workouts In Certain States
BOSTON (CBS) -- The first step toward sports returning will happen this week. At least, it will be happening in some states.
In states where stay-at-home restrictions are or have been eased, the NBA will open facilities to allow players to work out, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
The report was careful to note that the allowance is not for group or team workouts, as it only applies to individual workouts.
In states where stay-at-home restrictions remain in place, the NBA will try to work with teams to "find alternative arrangements for their players," per Wojnarowksi.
As Wojnarowski reported, some NBA general managers said on a league conference call last week that their players were contemplating traveling to Georgia in order to work out in public gyms, due to Georgia's early lifting of stay-at-home restrictions. That idea "concerned many team executives," according to Wojnarowski.
The idea is not without complications, as many players returned to their offseason homes and are not living near their own team's facilities. Plus, "some GMs expressed concern to ESPN about the safety of the idea -- especially given expert medical opinions have been against the idea of reopening businesses," according to Wojnarowski.
Not all players would be for such a move, either. Boston's Jaylen Brown, a native of Georgia, said recently that he's uncomfortable with some states opening before others, as the nation tries to overcome the coronavirus pandemic.
The move doesn't make the return of actual NBA games any closer, but it's at least the first step for players in getting back into game shape, whenever those games might actually occur.
