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Trail Blazers: Damian Lillard wants a normal 2021 season. Is it possible?

By Andrew Zahnd

PORTLAND, OR - MAY 20: Damian Lillard #0 and CJ McCollum #3 of the Portland Trail Blazers look on before the game against the Golden State Warriors in Game Four of the Western Conference Finals on May 20, 2019 at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images)
PORTLAND, OR - MAY 20: Damian Lillard #0 and CJ McCollum #3 of the Portland Trail Blazers look on before the game against the Golden State Warriors in Game Four of the Western Conference Finals on May 20, 2019 at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Damian Lillard hopes the league does not alter the 20/21 season. Ensuring that could mean an unfortunate ending to the current season for the Trail Blazers.

First off, let’s make it clear. No one, and I mean no one, knows if, when, or how the 2019-2020 season can be salvaged. More importantly, no one knows if, when or how the COVID-19 pandemic will come to an end. (Side note: stay safe and up to date here)

Nonetheless, the ideas to save the NBA have come in no short supply. The NBA could resume play with the playoffs and forego the remainder of the regular season. The NBA could shorten the playoffs by moving to a best-of-five or even a best-of-three format.

Plans have been drawn up that suggest a possible 24 team tournament to decide which teams make the playoffs. Could the teams all play in Las Vegas in one arena and keep quarantined? The wildest idea of all, courtesy of Jay Williams, is to play the games on secluded, sterilized cruise ships.

According to Ramona Shelburne, the NBA’s players and owners have made it clear that they hope to salvage the season “no matter what”. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski stated the “best-case scenario” is a mid-June return. The entire situation is filled with uncertainty, however, the one extremely viable option that would devastate fans the most: a cancellation of the whole season and playoffs.

The good news for fans is that Ramona Shelburne continued her statement by saying it’s possible the season extends all the way into September because “I don’t think anyone wants to start a new season without crowning a champion from this season.”

Damian Lillard on the other hand recently shared some thoughts of his own. According to Jamie Goldberg, the Trail Blazers reporter for the Oregonian, Lillard has told the league he wants to ensure a normal schedule for the 2020-2021 season.

It’s hard to disagree with Lillard. It would be great to start the NBA season on time and have a full 82 game slate with games beginning in October as they usually do. Yet, the idea of the 2020-2021 season extending into September would make the October tip-off seem nearly impossible.

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Players need to rest. Sure, they are resting now, but that is due to government mandated shelter-in-place orders, not to mention for their own safety. Players need time with their families, time to get healthy, time to travel, time to pursue business ventures, and for Lillard, time to film Space Jam 2.

So if the current NBA season resumes in June and continues into August and September, what happens to the offseason? The most likely answer involves moving back the start date of next season. Some rumors have pegged Christmas day as a possible option to tip-off the season. Lillard shared some thoughts on that notion as well.

When it comes to this season and next, a lot is possible, but only time will tell. The guessing games will continue on and the wild ideas will only get wilder. The only fact is that the NBA seems stuck between a rock and a hard place and will have some difficult decisions to make as the clock continues to tick.