NBA: The pros and cons to such a shortened offseason

71 Days: Enough for the NBA offseason turnaround or pending disaster?

LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA - AUGUST 27: The Black Lives Matter logo is seen on an empty court as all NBA playoff games were postponed today during the 2020 NBA Playoffs at AdventHealth Arena at ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on August 27, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. NBA players have reportedly decided to resume the season after their walkout of playoff games on Wednesday to protest the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

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NBA Finals Jimmy Butler defends LeBron James (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

Con No. 1: Playoff Teams

This quick turnaround is pretty unfair to playoff teams that went far this year. Teams like the Heat and Lakers played 20-plus games in the playoffs let alone the seeding games as well. NBA veterans like LeBron and Anthony Davis logged over 760 minutes in the playoffs each, and Jimmy Butler played more than 800. These players are not getting enough rest in the off-season to play a shortened, more competitive season.

This will likely result in an increase in the already rampant load management in the NBA. There were rumors that stars like LeBron would sit out the first month of the season if it started in December. I don’t think it will be that drastic, but it would not surprise me one bit if LeBron, Jimmy, possibly Nikola Jokic take the first couple of weeks off to get some additional rest. I think both the NBA and stars are at peace with this.

The stars know that the NBA had to start sooner rather than later to be able to play close to a full season and the NBA knew that some stars would likely sit out if that were the case. Necessary evils all around.

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