Bet on Which League Will Be First to Resume Regular Season – NBA and MLB Given Best Odds

• Coronavirus has put every major North American sports league on pause
• The NBA and MLB are the +200 co-favorites to resume their regular seasons first
• Analysis of all of the odds, picks and predictions is provided below

The NBA was the first of the major North American sports to make the move. MLB was the last.

Which one will be the first to come back? That’s the prop wager bettors can wager on today.

By Thursday afternoon, almost all big-league North American sports took the option to pause their seasons due to the anticipated coronavirus impact.

The NBA and MLB are co-favorites to win this race at +200.

Odds on Which Sport Will Play a Regular-Season or Playoff Game First

Odds taken March 12th. Based on the day of the first game. If two leagues play their first game on the same day, wagers will be settled as no action.

The NHL is narrowly behind the MLB and NBA at +210.

NBA Will Play Waiting Game

The NBA was the first to call a halt to its season. The league made the announcement Wednesday night. That revelation was made public shortly after Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for coronavirus.

Since then, a second player, Utah guard Donovan Mitchell, has also come up with a positive test result. They are the first North American pro athletes to contract the disease. Players from teams that played the Jazz over the past 10 days are also currently being tested.

Some possible scenarios if sports is suspended at least 30 days:
– NCAA March Madness becomes May Madness
– NBA Finals game during July 4th weekend.
– World Series game on Thanksgiving.
– Next NBA season opens on Christmas Day.

— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) March 12, 2020

Speculation is that the NBA will take a 30-day break and then reassess the situation. The decision to halt the season was taken so abruptly by Commissioner Adam Silver that no long-term plan was outlined.

Thursday morning, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban suggested that the league could opt for an extended season that runs into August.

MLB Opts For Two-Week Break

Major League Baseball was the last of the big four pro sports currently in-season to make a coronavirus precautionary call. They were contesting spring-training games on Thursday.

Statement from Major League Baseball: pic.twitter.com/0bWS5VTRPu

— MLB (@MLB) March 12, 2020

Later in the day, Commissioner Rob Manfred announced that MLB would cancel spring training and take a two-week break until opening day.

They announced that a number of contingency plans were in place but declined to go into specifics.

NHL Shuts Down Indefinitely

After originally discussing playing in empty arenas, the NHL also opted for an indefinite pause to the season following a Thursday meeting of its Board of Governors.

The NHL pauses the 2019-20 season. pic.twitter.com/bCi776ZFqX

— NHL (@NHL) March 12, 2020

The league shares arenas and locker rooms with NBA teams. No doubt the positive tests of the Jazz players played a role in this decision.

MLS Takes 30-Day Break

Thursday, Major League Soccer also announced it was taking a 30-day break to assess the impact of the coronavirus.

Major League Soccer Suspends Season for 30 Days pic.twitter.com/P0HEPmsnkx

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) March 12, 2020

MLS Commissioner Don Garber described the decision as a temporary suspension of the season.

Who’s Coming Back First?

Of the four leagues, only the NHL isn’t opting for a ballpark figure on a proposal to return to action.

Among these organizations, the NBA is the one that tends to make the most well thought-out and responsible decisions. Plus, they have time on their hands. Basketball can be played as a summer sport.

Who would have thought a movie where Michael Jordan is regularly belittled by a talking duck would accurately portray the shutdown of the #NBA due to disease fears. #coronavirus pic.twitter.com/t7eBlBu5p0

— Journeyman Sports (@JourneymnSports) March 12, 2020

Hockey can’t. Ice conditions in warmer weather are notoriously poor.

Baseball loves to talk about the sanctity of the 162-game season, so MLB can’t wait too long to throw out the first pitch. And they can move games to warm-weather locales.

Pick: MLB (+200)