Authorization for Individual Training Granted to NBA Players
The authorization would allow players to return to work under the control of their teams in their facilities, but individually.
The information in this regard was provided tonight by several journalistic sources, without any official comment from NBA commissioner Adam Silver's office on the matter.
However, the possibility of starting individual training worries some general managers, given the medical opinions of experts who maintain that it is still too early to resume these activities.
A series of sources indicated that players will be able to return to their team's facilities in states like Georgia, where the Atlanta Hawks are preparing to conduct voluntary individual workouts next week.
Teams will continue to be prohibited from conducting group workouts or other organized activities, according to the same sources.
These added that in jurisdictions in the United States where more restrictive stay-at-home orders are in place, the NBA will inform teams that the league will work with franchises to help find alternative arrangements for the players.
However, the partial reopening of the NBA, based on the lifting of certain local government policies, does not currently mean that there will be a new schedule for the resumption of the championship, which was suspended on March 11.
The NBA decided to suspend all activities after French center Rudy Gobert, from the Utah Jazz, became the first player in the league to test positive for the coronavirus.
Journalistic sources pointed out that Commissioner Silver and the owners of NBA teams need more time and consultations to determine how and when to resume the season.
Many basketball team executives have been urging for the opportunity for players to return to their facilities, which they consider among the safest possible environments for them to be protected from the pandemic.
In a conference call with general managers and Silver on Thursday, some executives said they had players asking about the possibility of traveling to Atlanta to exercise in gyms, an idea that was concerning within the NBA.
It is expected that organizations with open facilities will be able to allow opposing players residing in the same cities to use their gyms in a limited manner.
Many teams give permission to players who reside in Los Angeles, Houston, and Miami during the offseason to train at facilities such as the Los Angeles Lakers, the Clippers, and the Houston Rockets, among others.
It is also thought that the Dallas Mavericks and the San Antonio Spurs will have their respective training areas ready next week for their players to start working individually.
However, none of the teams have made comments about the possibility of opening their facilities or about the training plans they may develop.