NBA Quarantined at Walt Disney World

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Writing for Yahoo Sports, Keith Smith argues that Walt Disney World would be the ideal place for the NBA to resume play.

In his view, WDW has the right facilities:

You would also need space for practices. Teams aren’t going to jump right back into the season and just start playing games. They are going to need some form of a mini-training camp leading up to the resumed season. They will also need practice space throughout the remainder of the season.

The ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex can offer all of that.

The right broadcast capabilities:

Not only is EWWS ready to broadcast, it has plenty of space to create interview rooms as well. And Disney’s hotels are equipped to be set up to provide access for filming with relative ease.

The right accommodations:

Disney has an abundance of hotel rooms on their 39 square-mile property near Orlando, Florida.

The right relationship with the NBA:

NBA commissioner Adam Silver and Disney executive chairman Bob Iger have often spoken of their mutual admiration for each other and the entities each oversees. At the opening of The NBA Experience, Iger spoke at length of his love for the NBA. In turn, Silver spoke of his love of all things Disney. Their relationship could be a key component to making this work.

And, setting Disney apart from other venues hoping to host a single-site NBA season, full control over the surrounding area:

Unlike many of the other locations mentioned as single-site candidates, Walt Disney World is private property. That includes not only the hotels and EWWS, but the immediate surrounding area as well. In effect, Disney can create a bubble by closing off streets and denying access to any area with relative ease. Some of the other potential locations may be able to restrict access to hotels/housing and the basketball facilities, but closing down the surrounding public areas would be difficult.

What do you think? Would this work? Have you heard about any internal discussions at Disney on this topic?

 

[DRC68]

Not the worst idea I've heard...if there's a Disney dollar to be made, they've been discussing it.

 

[Club Cooloholic]

Writing for Yahoo Sports, Keith Smith argues that Walt Disney World would be the ideal place for the NBA to resume play.

In his view, WDW has the right facilities:


The right broadcast capabilities:


The right accommodations:


The right relationship with the NBA:


And, setting Disney apart from other venues hoping to host a single-site NBA season, full control over the surrounding area:


What do you think? Would this work? Have you heard about any internal discussions at Disney on this topic?

Maybe I dont have a good understanding of World Wide of Sports, but isn't most of it outside? NBA players train indoors and play games indoors.

 

[Mickey5150]

Maybe I dont have a good understanding of World Wide of Sports, but isn't most of it outside? NBA players train indoors and play games indoors.

I know they have hosted college basketball there. They definitely have indoor basketball facilities but I don't know how many courts they have. Definitely feasible.

 

[Club Cooloholic]

I know they have hosted college basketball there. They definitely have indoor basketball facilities but I don't know how many courts they have. Definitely feasible.

I would think a large indoor football stadium, like in Indy or Atlanta, would work well as well, where they could put multiple courts in the space.

 

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Maybe I dont have a good understanding of World Wide of Sports, but isn't most of it outside? NBA players train indoors and play games indoors.

There are several indoor facilities; some designed for basketball and some that can be easily repurposed for basketball. The article goes into more detail about the specific number of courts available.