The resumption of practice routines for individual NBA teams will be based on public health concerns, but a Miami Heat insider states that some of the team’s players may end up conducting closed-door scrimmages anyway.
Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel answered questions from fans on different topics, with one fan asking whether such practices will be more than simply done on an individual level, per an NBA directive.
Winderman pointed out that some Heat players may ignore the NBA’s directive about conducting group workouts.
“By NBA edict? No,” Winderman wrote. “But I would find it hard to believe that the entire roster would be back in South Florida and not sneaking off for closed-door scrimmages. In many ways, such pick-up games are the typical rhythm of the Heat offseason, and this has felt like the offseason for a while, albeit in anything but typical circumstances.”
All NBA teams have been off the court since the league suspended play on March 11 because of the coronavirus pandemic, with a report on Friday indicating that a target date for returning to play is July 31.
The NBA directive is meant to limit the chances of transmission of the highly contagious illness that’s affected people around the world.
At the time of the league’s suspension of play, the Heat were on target to reach the postseason, with their 41-24 regular-season record giving them the fourth-best record in the Eastern Conference.
Exactly who the Heat would play in this year’s postseason and what format would be used remains unknown.
