Hope you’re ready for the new-look Philadelphia 76ers, because basketball is back.

The NBA and players’ union reached an agreement (in principle) on the start of the new season, which was announced late Monday night/Tuesday morning, when most of us were in bed.

Here’s the calendar as it stands:

  • Wednesday, November 18th: NBA draft
  • Friday, November 20th: free agency begins
  • Tuesday, December 1st: training camp
  • Tuesday, December 22nd: regular season starts

 

They’ll play a 72-game schedule this year, which is slated to end before the Tokyo Olympics begin in late July.

In addition, the salary cap will set just above $109 million, with a luxury tax threshold hitting at $132.6 million. Those are the same numbers from this past season and ESPN’s Tim Bontemps is additionally reporting:

The hope is that revenue losses will be a temporary thing as a result of the pandemic. There’s an agreement on tax burden and the escrow system to help mitigate this situation in the short term. The Sixers are one of four teams currently in the luxury tax.

This will be a really tight and compacted offseason. Teams will only have 34 days to operate from the draft to the start of the season, so Daryl Morey and the new-look front office are gonna have to get started right away. The Sixers own five picks in the upcoming draft and will select at 21, 34, 36, 49, and 58 overall. That’s a late first round pick and four second rounders.

Buckle up.