Phoenix Suns general manager James Jones is “optimistic” the NBA will resume the 2019-20 season despite the growing number of COVID-19 cases.

As of Thursday afternoon, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have reported more than 605,000 coronavirus cases with nearly 25,000 deaths. 

“We’re exploring the options to resume the season,” Jones said in a joint conference call Thursday with Suns head coach Monty Williams. “We want to crown a champion. I think every player will tell you that they want some closure to the season. We’ll do that in our respective way.” 

There have reports the league could bypass the remainder of the regular season, go straight to the postseason and hold playoff games in a central location like Las Vegas, as the NBA appears determined to go as late as Labor Day weekend to finish the season.

If that happens, the Suns (26-39) wouldn’t play another game this season.

“We have to make sure to do it the right way,” Jones continued. “We won’t forsake health or wellness to play, but this is what we do. If you ask players, if you ask anyone who is associated with the game, we love this, and this means a lot to us. If we can play, we’ll try to play. However we come back, I know everyone is on board with doing what’s best for the game. If that format is straight to the playoffs, if that format is regular season games, condensed schedules, I’m pretty sure we’ll look at it all, but at the end of the day, it’ll be the right situation for our league and for society.”  

NBA commissioner Adam Silver said last week decisions on resuming the 2019-20 season won’t be made until May 1 at the earliest.

“We should accept that at least for the month of April we won’t be in any position to make any decisions,” Silver told TNT’s Inside the NBA host, Ernie Johnson, in an interview on Twitter.

Jones said the league has had weekly talks with teams, expressing concerns about the players. In turn, Jones has kept in touch with the players as has Williams, who added he’s been having conference calls with his staff.

The conversations have centered around how everyone is doing.

“This is a very trying time, something we’ve never seen as a league and never seen as a society,” Jones said.

Jones said there are ongoing talks about how long it would take for players to get ready for a season. When considering how abruptly the season ended, Jones said it could take five to seven weeks to get ready, but he would first like to get the players in the arena for a couple of weeks to see where they’re at physically. 

“This is such a new deal for us, the time the team is going to need is something (that) is going to take a lot of thought,” Williams said

Unlike the lockout years when players filled gyms competing in pick-up games, they’re not able to do that now due to the virus.  

Phoenix views this season as an improvement. In their first season under Williams, the Suns have won more games than in the previous four seasons — with 17 games remaining. 

Jones admitted the scouting process for the draft has obviously been different, but because the season has been on hold, the Suns have had more time to review film on potential draft prospects.

Have opinion about current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at [email protected] or contact him at 480-787-1240. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin.

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