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Tim BontempsESPN
The NBA has shared with its players a safety plan to help enforce the health and safety protocols it announced last week and secure its campus at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex for the resumption of the 2019-20 season, they said. league sources to ESPN.
The league will utilize federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, as well as experienced and contracted security professionals and team security personnel.
A source familiar with the league’s plans said there will be no law enforcement on campus. The police will only be used outside of it to keep the campus safe.
NBA locations in Orlando, Florida will also have secured perimeters, technology security deployments, and a “fusion center” approach to threat intelligence. In addition, league security will ensure that all team hotels’ campuses and campuses are closed to people without credentials. There will be secure checkpoints, credential checking, and roaming security within and outside the perimeter of each location in use.
Any off-campus movement would be limited to a pre-approved emergency or a planned move backed by NBA safety. For any off-campus event that is organized for recreational purposes, league security will be complemented by former special operations forces personnel to “provide a scalable security bubble.” Activities on campus will be managed by the safety of the individual team.
A combination of the Department of Homeland Security, Walt Disney World Security and the NBA Global Security Operations Center will monitor networks for threats on social media and share intelligence directed toward the event. According to the DHS website, a fusion center “is a collaborative effort of two or more agencies that provide resources, expertise, and information to the center with the goal of maximizing its ability to detect, prevent, investigate, and respond to criminal activities and terrorists. “
Additionally, the Orange and Osceola County Sheriff’s Offices will be present at the team’s hotels and at the three arenas that are used in Disney’s Wide World of Sports complex. The Florida Highway Patrol will escort team buses to and from games.
The teams began individual practice in their local markets on Tuesday, when they were asked to start testing players every other day. Tuesday also marked two weeks before the teams begin arriving in Orlando on July 7.
Games for the 22 teams that will resume play will begin on July 30, and the first round of the playoffs will begin in late August. The NBA Finals are scheduled to conclude no later than October 13.
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