NBA NEWS

NBA considers extending season by a week

The Sports Xchange

April 17, 2015 at 1:04 pm.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver. Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA is considering extending the season by a week in 2015-16 to alleviate the number of back-to-back games teams must play, commissioner Adam Silver said Friday at the Board of Governors meeting in New York.

Silver said the league probably will make a decision on the possible extension by early May.

He said the league should be able to reduce the number of back-to-back sets next year to 16 per team, which would be the lowest ever. He also said the league thinks it can reduce to one the number of times teams have to play four times in five nights.

Silver also said the league could shorten the preseason starting in 2016 so the season can begin earlier.

Silver also said the league will continue to look at options for changing the draft lottery and playoff seeding.

A proposal in October to alter the format of the draft lottery did not garner enough support, and Silver said the competition committee has had several meetings since then to examine options.

With a new TV deal beginning in 2016-17 and the league expecting a big boost in the salary cap, Silver said owners seem content to wait and see how teams behave in the new NBA economy before changing the draft.

As for playoff seeding, Silver said it would require more study and discussion. He said he is “intrigued” by the possibility of a play-in game for the eighth spot in each conference, but he also said some owners value tradition.

“It’s early days in these discussions,” he said, adding, “The result was inclusive as to where we should ultimately go.”