Adam Silver sends memo to NBA owners warning them about resting healthy players
In advance of the 2016-17 NBA season, the league landed a new broadcast rights deal with its television partners worth more than $2.6 billion over the next nine years. So, when the Warriors rest a healthy Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green for a nationally televised game against the Spurs, and then the Cavaliers do something similar with LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love a week later against the Clippers, commissioner Adam Silver has no choice but to step in.
He did exactly that Monday, sending a memo to owners warning of "significant penalties" for teams that do not follow protocol in this regard, according to a report from ESPN.
In the memo, Silver informed teams that the issue will be a prime topic of discussion at the next NBA Board of Governors meeting April 6 in New York and warned of "significant penalties" for teams that don't abide by the league's standing rules for providing "notice to the league office, their opponent, and the media immediately upon a determination that a player will not participate in a game due to rest."
He states that it is unacceptable for owners to be uninvolved or defer decision-making on this topic to others in their organizations, who may not have the same awareness of the impact these decisions can have on "fans and business partners," the reputation of the league and "perception of our game."
