If Dubs complete sweep, NBA offseason will start historically early
CLEVELAND (AP) -- If the Golden State Warriors win the NBA championship on Friday night, it'll mark the earliest start to the offseason in more than three decades.
The last time the NBA Finals ended on or before June 8 was back in 1986, when the Boston Celtics defeated the Houston Rockets in six games. Since then, the earliest any title series has ended was June 12.
That means the Warriors get two chances to bring on an early summer: If they lose Game 4, they'll play host to Game 5 on June 11.
The NBA season started earlier than the previous norms this year, part of the league's initiative to add days to the schedule in order to limit back-to-backs and help get players more rest during the 82-game regular season grind. These finals started May 31, just the second time since 1986 that Game 1 wasn't played in June.
------
-
2024 NBA Playoff Bracket: Updated schedule, scores, standings
2024 NBA Playoff Schedule: How to watch NBA Finals, TV, streaming, free
2024 NBA Power Rankings: Can the Celtics and Thunder stay on top?
-
2024 NBA Playoff odds: First-round odds tracker
2024 Bronny James NBA Draft odds: Lakers aiming to pair LeBron-Bronny?
2024 NBA Championship odds: Celtics favored for Finals; Nuggets closing in
-
2024 NBA Playoff Bracket: Updated schedule, scores, standings
2024 NBA Playoff Schedule: How to watch NBA Finals, TV, streaming, free
2024 NBA Power Rankings: Can the Celtics and Thunder stay on top?
-
2024 NBA Playoff odds: First-round odds tracker
2024 Bronny James NBA Draft odds: Lakers aiming to pair LeBron-Bronny?
2024 NBA Championship odds: Celtics favored for Finals; Nuggets closing in