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The Blazers are going to Disney World…probably!
According to ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnarowski, the NBA is set to ratify a plan to restart the league's halted season, which will send 22 teams to Florida to finalize seeding and then proceed with the playoffs, with all games held at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando.
Under the proposal, along with the teams who were already occupying the top eight seeds in both conferences when the season stopped March 11, all teams who were within six games of a playoff berth will compete in eight "regular season" games to determine the final seeding.
That includes the New Orleans Pelicans, San Antonio Spurs, Sacramento Kings, Phoenix Suns, Washington Wizards—and the Portland Trail Blazers, who had a record of 29-37, placing them three and a half games out of the eighth spot in the Western Conference.
Wojnarowski also reports there are plans for a play-in tournament in case the ninth seed finishes within four games of the eighth seed.
It's an intriguing scenario for Portland in particular—despite the team's rocky year, it'll be going to Florida with center Jusuf Nurkic, who was due to make his return following a yearlong recovery from a leg injury the week the season was suspended. It's not clear if forward Zach Collins, who suffered a torn left shoulder only a few games into the 2019-20 season, will also be back in the lineup, but Damian Lillard recently said he's "100 percent positive" both Nurkic and Collins will be available whenever the season resumes. (Guard Rodney Hood, sadly, remains out with a torn Achilles tendon.)
In any case, the scenario should please Dame D.O.L.L.A.: He made it clear he would not suit up if the Blazers were unable to compete for a playoff spot in a resumed season.
The NBA board of governors will vote on the restart plan tomorrow. If approved, the season will tentatively resume July 31 and go through mid-October.
Related: CJ McCollum Questions the Blazers' Decision to Reopen the Team's Practice Facility.