NBA GMs and trainers want a month-long training session before the season resumes

NBA team management, coaches, and trainers requested the league to consider having at least a one month-long training period before officially resuming games for the 2019-2020 season. All games were suspended a month ago due to the coronavirus pandemic.

While there is no official announcement about when the games will resume, Team officials are concerned that players can't hop on the floor to play professional-level basketball games after a month-long hiatus.

Some teams, such as the Brooklyn Nets, Utah Jazz, and Los Angeles Lakers had all of their players go into self-isolation for at least 14 days, due to coronavirus exposure. Some players are in self-isolation longer than 14 days due to actually having the virus. All three teams are qualified for the playoffs if the current standings are used for postseason seeding. The Los Angeles Lakers and Utah Jazz are currently 1st and 4th in the Western Conference respectively, while the Nets are 7th in the East.

While there's a consensus that players need to retrain their bodies to top physical form before playing professional level basketball games, there's also a conflict with the timetable needed to complete the season in order to limit the financial losses.

An NBA athletic training official discussed another factor under consideration:

"You've got some players that are privileged enough to be isolating in their luxury mansions with full gyms and [who] practically built their own Olympic training centers. And you've got some people that are isolating in their 1,200-square foot apartment or at their parents' house. That's the range of the 450 some odd players in the NBA." As such, he suggests that the league must look at the lowest common denominator in evaluating the players' fitness levels and access to training equipment.

While a month-long training camp sounds unrealistic at this point, especially since there's no official announcement from the league on when the games will resume, team managements stress that it's crucial for players to get back in competitive form before any official games are played or they might hurt themselves.

According to Bleacher Report, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told everyone that due to the fluid nature of the pandemic, no one can expect any official decision to be made in the near future for the league as a whole. Adding a training camp for players before the league resumes further complicates things for the NBA's plan to continue the 2019-2020 season.