The 2020–21 NBA G League season was the 20th season of the
NBA G League
The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...
, the official
minor league basketball organization owned by the
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
(NBA). The season was indefinitely postponed following the previous season's cessation amid the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. The league used the same type of isolation season as the
2020 NBA Bubble with all games at
ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in
Bay Lake, Florida
Bay Lake is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 29 at the 2020 census. It is named after a lake that lies east of Magic Kingdom. All four of the Walt Disney World Resort theme parks, and one of Walt Disney Worl ...
. Only 17 of the 28 teams from the previous season, plus the new
NBA G League Ignite development team, chose to participate.
League changes
In December 2019, NBA commissioner
Adam Silver
Adam Silver (born April 25, 1962) is an American lawyer and sports executive who is serving as the fifth and current commissioner of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He joined the NBA in 1992 and has held various positions within the ...
announced that the
Capitanes de Ciudad de México of the
Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional
The National Professional Basketball League ( or LNBP), officially known as the Liga Grupo Caliente, Caliente LNBP for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional basketball sports league, league in Mexico. The league was founded in 2000 with 1 ...
would be joining the G League in the 2020–21 season on a five-year agreement. The
2019–20 season was then curtailed by the restrictions of the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
and all remaining games after March 12, 2020, and the playoffs were cancelled.
On July 9, 2020, the
Phoenix Suns
The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...
announced they were relocating their G League franchise, the
Northern Arizona Suns, from the Prescott Valley to the Phoenix area for the 2020–21 season and subsequently sold the franchise to the
Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...
. The Pistons plan to move the team to Detroit in the 2021–22 season under the name
Motor City Cruise. The
New Orleans Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Confere ...
launched a name-the-team contest for their
upcoming team in Birmingham.
During the constantly changing restrictions amid the pandemic, no announcements for the 2020–21 season were made by the league or the NBA. The NBA season began in December 2020. It was rumored that all games for the G League season would take place in a bubble similar to the
2020 NBA Bubble in either
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
, or outside
Orlando, Florida
Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...
, with several teams likely to opt out, but that the
NBA G League Ignite prospects team would be joining. The bubble season was confirmed by the league on January 8, 2021, to start in February at
ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at
Walt Disney World
The Walt Disney World Resort is an destination resort, entertainment resort complex located about southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States. Opened on October 1, 1971, the resort is operated by Disney Experiences, a division of the Wa ...
in
Bay Lake, Florida
Bay Lake is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 29 at the 2020 census. It is named after a lake that lies east of Magic Kingdom. All four of the Walt Disney World Resort theme parks, and one of Walt Disney Worl ...
. Eleven teams opted out of the season: the
Capital City Go-Go,
College Park Skyhawks,
Grand Rapids Drive,
Maine Red Claws,
Northern Arizona Suns,
Sioux Falls SkyForce,
South Bay Lakers,
Stockton Kings
The Stockton Kings are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in Stockton, California, and are affiliated with the Sacramento Kings. The Kings play their home games at the Adventist Health Arena and compete in the G ...
,
Texas Legends,
Windy City Bulls
The Windy City Bulls are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, and are affiliated with the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls play their home games at Now Arena, from Chicago. It became the thirte ...
, and
Wisconsin Herd. The Capitanes de Ciudad de México also announced they would postpone their first season in the league until 2021–22.
The schedule was announced on January 27 with the 18 teams each playing 15 regular season games between February 9 and March 6. There is no conference or divisional alignment in the bubble and the top eight teams play a single-elimination playoff from March 8 through the championship game on March 11.
Regular season
Playoffs
For the first time since the
2006–07 NBA Development League season, the playoffs were held entirely as a single-elimination bracket (the league held this type of format from 2003 to 2007, albeit with four teams for the first three seasons and six for the last season). The Lakeland Magic became the lowest seeded team to win a G League championship.
Championship boxscore
Awards
Player of the Week
Notable occurrences
* On July 9, 2020, Tori Miller became the first female general manager (GM) in the NBA G League when she was promoted to the position by the
College Park Skyhawks.
*On January 15, 2021, Amber Nichols became the second female general manager in the NBA G League when she was promoted to the position by the
Capital City Go-Go.
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:NBA G
Nba G League season