NBA news: LeBron James is not happy with the short break before the 2020-21 season starts
The Lakers had to play all the way to the 2019-2020 finals, leaving them with a very short off-season.
The NBA and NBPA decided to start the new season by December 22, 2020. While there are many challenges to ensure everyone's safety in the league, the fact remains that it's in everyone's best interest to restart the games as soon as possible.
But not everyone is happy with the league starting during the peak season. 4-time NBA champion and Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James is one of the players who played the most total minutes last season and eventually won the championship. James, who turns 36 this year, is not happy with the "short" rest period.
Last week, President Barack Obama and LeBron James joked about the upcoming season, saying that James won't play in defence in the first half of the regular season to "save himself when it counts" and let Anthony Davis do the heavy lifting.
However, according to The Score, Lakers guard Danny Green believes that James may sit out the first month of the season to extend their off-season, "load management" style.
The league has yet to comment on penalties for players who choose to "opt-out" of the restart, and the NBPA is still not done negotiating with the team owners regarding the pay-cut in their new CBA. It is expected that all players will lose 25-30% of their current contract value, and those with advance payments will make up for the difference in the coming seasons.
For superstars like LeBron James who already earned over 200 million US dollars in their long career, they will not care about a few thousand dollar fines in exchange for their long-term health.
However, the league and the NBPA decided to start early to take advantage of the ticket sales during the Christmas season. Historically, NBA ratings and ticket sales are highest in the last two weeks of the year. If superstars like LeBron James will not show up to play, then the effect on ticket sales will further ruin the NBA's financial expectations.
While there are a few players who only get a short vacation, teams who didn't qualify for the 2019-2020 restart have not played since early March. Injured players such as Golden State Warriors Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry are excited to get back on the court and strut their stuff.
© Copyright IBTimes 2024. All rights reserved.