NBA Won't Play Games on Election Day During 2022-23 Season to Encourage Fans to Vote

The NBA announced Tuesday it won't schedule games on Election Day on Nov. 8, 2022, in line with the league's "focus on promoting nonpartisan civic engagement and encouraging fans to make a plan to vote during midterm elections."

"Over the next few months, teams will distribute information on their state's voting process and voter registration deadlines and are encouraging everyone to communicate this information with families and friends to ensure they all have a plan," the NBA said.

More Than A Vote, a nonprofit co-founded by Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, called for the NBA and other leagues to use arenas or team facilities as voting centers during the 2020 election cycle.

In August 2020, the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association announced an agreement to end a wildcat strike that began within the league's Walt Disney World Resort bubble.

The Milwaukee Bucks refused to take the floor for their playoff game against the Orlando Magic in the wake of the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Their protest spread across the league.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and NBPA Executive Director Michele Roberts issued a joint statement saying games would resume after the two sides struck a deal to address the players' concerns.

In addition to creating a new social justice coalition, Roberts and Silver said "team governors will continue to work with local elections officials to convert the facility into a voting location for the 2020 general election" in applicable cities.

Twenty-three NBA teams took part in the initiative, with a number of arenas used as a polling location.