The NBA will finish out the 2019-2020 season at ESPN Wide World of Sports at Walt Disney World Resort. Yahoo! Sports and The Athletic are reporting that teams will be divided among three hotels at the Resort.
Gran Destino at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, and Disney’s Yacht Club Resort will be housing the teams.
Top teams will go to the Gran Destino, which Disney’s site calls a celebration of “the unique blend of Spanish, Mexican and Southwest American cultures.” The tower at the Coronado Springs Resort opened in July 2019, and room rates start at $263 per night.
The Coronado Springs Resort is the only moderate priced hotel at Walt Disney World that offers convention and conference facilities.
Teams that will occupy Gran Destino are: Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers, Toronto Raptors, Los Angeles Clippers, Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets, Utah Jazz, and Miami Heat.
Yahoo Sports’ Keith Smith reports that the Coronado Springs Resort will be considered one of the main hub areas for the NBA in Orlando, explaining why the best teams are being placed there. If a team from the other hotels makes it into the playoffs, they could reportedly be asked to move to the Gran Destino.
The Grand Floridian is where Disney says “Victorian elegance meets modern sophistication.” Regarded as a flagship resort for Disney, room rates typically start at $710 and reach well into the quadruple digits for suites and rooms with views.
The following teams will occupy the Grand Floridian: Oklahoma City Thunder, Philadelphia 76ers, Houston Rockets, Indiana Pacers, Dallas Mavericks, Brooklyn Nets, Memphis Grizzlies, and Orlando Magic.
Last up is the Yacht Club, where players can “delight in the formal grace of a grand New England-style yacht club at this lakeside hotel.” Room rates start at $487. There’s a significant drawback here, however, as the resort shares many amenities with the Beach Club, one of the many properties Disney plans to reopen on June 22. That could make maintaining the bubble a little more tricky than you want.
Teams occupying the Yacht Club Resort are: Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings, New Orleans Pelicans, San Antonio Spurs, Phoenix Suns, and Washington Wizards.
In addition to being housed at Walt Disney World, NBA players will get plenty of entertainment while staying at the Resort.
Most every hotel amenity will be at the players’ disposal, including movie nights, outdoor entertainment, and the ability to attend other games at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. Per the Los Angeles Times’ Dan Woike, players could also get special access to Disney Parks, plus golf, bowling and fishing.
Each team will reportedly have a 35-person traveling party of players, coaches, trainers and other miscellaneous staff, and players who leave the campus without permission will face a 10-14 day quarantine and pay cut.
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