The proposals have been many.
Arturas Karnisovas and the rest of the Bulls organization better hope at least one of those proposals resonates.
With the NBA board of governors and then the players’ union approving the 22-team restart “bubble’’ last week, that left eight teams out. Not out of playing and competing for just a few weeks or a few months, either. No, potentially not playing a meaningful game from the early March coronavirus shutdown all the way until next December.
Players can get all the shots up and run all the suicide sprints they want in that nine-month game-less cavern, but that won’t change the development gap that will come out of the aftermath between the teams that were in the “bubble’’ and the ones that were out.
The new executive vice president of basketball operations for the Bulls knows that all too well.
“We’re throwing a bunch of things to the league to involve the eight teams, the players, the coaches and staff to again have create ways to develop our players and the teams that were left out,’’ Karnisovas said over the weekend. “So it’s going to be up to the league, some of it is going to be conversations with the players’ association, so we’re still waiting for direction, although we’re exchanging a lot of conversations and proposals with the league.’’
Multiple reports have detailed some of those proposals, including a regional mini summer league, combined scrimmage cities, extended training camps for the left-out teams, and allowing for more frequent team activities.
Karnisovas hopes one — ideally several — or those ideas has some staying power.
“I do agree with you that not playing for eight months put us in a competitive disadvantage, but again, I think there are creative ways to [stay sharp],’’ Karnisovas said. “Collectively, these eight teams, we’re getting now on calls and we’re having conversations about how we can develop our players and how we can have a structure in place to get some practicing and possibly some scrimmaging possibly in the offseason to catch up to those teams that are going to be playing.
“The work obviously never stops. I informed the players that we will inform them depending on what the league is going to allow us to do this summer, and we’re going to go from there.’’
The most logical solution, and likely the safest considering all of the moving parts, a summer league-like format in Las Vegas in August or September.
Atlanta, New York, Minnesota, Detroit, Cleveland, Charlotte and the Bulls are all somewhat in the same boat of development, with only Golden State the outlier of the group.
Competing against one another to determine the draft order one through eight would have been ideal, but likely won’t be realistic for the league to pull off. However, it will at least allow teams to get together, build chemistry, and at least have a baseline to move forward with come next December.
A must for everyone.
“Obviously, being out for 10 months, rest is always good,’’ Bulls veteran forward Thaddeus Young said last week. “I’ve had a lot of time to rest, so you have to find a way to get some type of work in. For me, being in my 13th season, it’s probably added a couple years onto my career, actually, being able to sit out for 10 months.’’
Make that almost everyone.
