Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the NBA won’t likely return until sometime in June after suspending the season earlier this month. The good news for NBA fans is they can re-watch this year’s games that have been played as well as games from previous years for absolutely free. This week, the NBA announced that its subscription-based television package, NBA League Pass, will be free for all fans for the next month.
“The evolving situation around the coronavirus has been challenging for everyone, and we hope that you are taking appropriate precautions to ensure that you and your family stay safe and healthy,” the league said in a letter to the fans. “We encourage you to visit NBA.com for additional information on how to protect yourself and your family during this unprecedented time.
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“Limiting social interactions is a critical way to minimize the spread of this virus, but staying home for long periods of time can be difficult. With the 2019-20 NBA season on hiatus, the NBA and Turner Sports are providing all fans with a free preview of NBA League Pass, the league’s premium subscription-based product, until April 22. This complimentary offering will provide you with access to full length and condensed replays of all games from the 2019-20 season, as well as an expansive archive of classic games and content.”
The letter ends by letting fans know that they can redeem the offer by signing into their NBA account through NBA.com or on the NBA app on iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Android mobile and tablet devices, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Xbox One and PlayStation 4.
The NBA suspended the season after learning Utah Jazz player Rudy Gobert tested positive for coronavirus. From there, it led to additional players testing positive including his teammate Donovan Mitchell and Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant. NBA commissioner Adam Silver talked to Rachel Nichols of ESPN on Wednesday night and he revealed what would have to happen if the league returns in June.
“What are the conditions we need for the league to restart? I would say I’m looking at three different things,” Silver said to Nichols. “One is, when can we restart and operate as we’ve known it with 19,000 fans in buildings? … Option two is, should we consider restarting without fans, and what would that mean? Because, presumably, if we had a group of players, and staff around them, and you could test them and follow some sort of protocol, doctors and health officials may say it’s safe to play.
“A third option that we are looking at now … the impact on the national psyche of having no sports programming on television. And one of the things we’ve been talking about are, are there conditions in which a group of players could compete — maybe it’s for a giant fundraiser or just the collective good of the people — where you take a subset of players and, is there a protocol where they can be tested and quarantined and isolated in some way, and they could compete against one another?”
