After being made to wait for almost four months, the 2019-20 NBA season will resume later tonight.
While the Coronavirus pandemic is still lurking around, measures have been put in place to protect players and staff.
The season restart sees the introduction of a new competitive format by the NBA’s Board of Governors.
The approved format means 22 teams will gather in Walt Disney World Resort in Florida for the comeback season.
The Eastern Conference is made up of nine NBA teams, while the Western Conference consists of 13.
The seven teams with the best records from both conferences will automatically qualify for the NBA playoffs.
The season will officially restart tonight (July 30, 2020) with New Orleans Pelicans taking on Utah Jazz.
There will, however, be no live audience or tickets available for the remaining restart games through the NBA Finals scheduled for October 13.
Below is a list of the teams in each conference:
Eastern Conference
- Milwaukee Bucks
- Toronto Raptors
- Boston Celtics
- Miami Heat
- Indiana Pacers
- Philadelphia 76ers
- Brooklyn Nets
- Orlando Magic
- Washington Wizards
Western Conference
- Los Angeles Lakers
- LA Clippers
- Denver Nuggets
- Utah Jazz
- Oklahoma City Thunder
- Houston Rockets
- Dallas Mavericks
- Memphis Grizzlies
- Portland Trail Blazers
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Sacramento Kings
- San Antonio Spurs
- Phoenix Suns
Also of interest will the players of African descent to watch out for as the season resumes. Some of such players include;
Dennis Schröder (Oklahoma City Thunder; Germany; parent from The Gambia) has the NBA’s highest-scoring average (19.0 ppg) in games played off the bench.
Rui Hachimura (Washington Wizards; Japan; parent from Benin; BWB Global 2016) leads all rookies in rebounding (6.0 rpg) and ranks fifth among rookies in scoring (13.4 ppg).
Siakam has recorded career highs in minutes (35.5 mpg), scoring (23.6 ppg), rebounds (7.5 rpg) and assists (3.6 apg).
Serge Ibaka (Raptors; Republic of the Congo) is averaging a career-high in scoring (16.0 ppg).
Antetokounmpo, the reigning Kia NBA MVP, ranks third in the league in both scoring (29.6 ppg) and rebounding (13.74 rpg).
