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Report: NBA Draft Could Move to Late September with Free Agency Opening Oct. 1
May 26, 2020
As the NBA calendar remains in a state of flux because of the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 draft and free agency reportedly could be moved back.
Per Marc Stein of the New York Times, some teams are expecting the draft will be held in September and free agency could open as late as Oct. 1.
On May 1, the league officially postponed the draft lottery (originally scheduled for May 19) and combine (May 21-24).
Even though there was no word about the draft in the announcement, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported there was "an increasing belief that it's just a matter of time" before it was postponed from its original date of June 25.
In the same report, Wojnarowski noted NBA commissioner Adam Silver and the board of governors discussed delaying the start of the 2020-21 season until December.
There is no official timetable for the NBA to resume this season, but Chief Communications Officer Mike Bass said in a statement the league is negotiating with The Walt Disney Company about using the Wide World of Sports Complex as a host site for a potential late-July restart.
If the NBA does finish this season, it's unclear at this point if any regular-season games will be played or if the league will move straight to the postseason.
Free agency is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET on June 30.