Mavericks' owner Mark Cuban hopeful for early June NBA return date: 'It's not inconceivable to me'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Dallas Mavericks’ owner Mark Cuban believes it's possible that the NBA could resume the season as early as June, saying that he thinks enough progress has been made to fight the coronavirus pandemic that the league could start planning for a “comeback.”
Cuban has been among the more outspoken NBA owners since the season was suspended on March 11. He initially had hopes that the season would return in mid-May, but as the threat of COVID-19 continued to worsen, he dimmed his optimistic outlook, saying just last week that he had “no idea” when his players would return to the court.
MAVERICKS’ OWNER MARK CUBAN HAS NO TIMETABLE FOR NBA RETURN BUT CONCEDES ‘AMERICA NEEDS SPORTS’
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}On Wednesday, Cuban seemed hopeful once again, telling KDKA FM that he believes fans could expect to see the season resume in early June.
“If things really go our way, it's not inconceivable to me – and this is me being hopeful and not being scientific – that we could potentially play games in early June," he said. “I think we're coming back. I can't tell you exactly when, but this is purely a science and doctors thing.”
While not offering a deeper explanation for this timetable, Cuban hinted that his prediction was based on recent advancements.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“All I know from all the science and everything that I'm reading, I think we're making enough advances that several of them will come through so we can start planning what a comeback would look like.”
He continued: “I'm a big believer in American exceptionalism, and everything I'm starting to hear in terms of the science is coming along and the medical advances that we're making to fight this thing makes me very positive. If I had to bet, and this is more a guess than a bet, I'd say early June is when you see teams start to take the field and maybe play games just for television."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}NBA commissioner Adam Silver said this week that the league will not make any decisions this month as the spread of the virus continues to make it too difficult to predict what will happen next.