Why are there no NBA games tonight? Explaining the leagues Election Day efforts

Are you looking for Tuesday’s NBA schedule and wondering why there are no games? The league is taking the day off for state and local elections across the United States to encourage fans to vote.

Here’s why the NBA will not play any games on Election Day and when the action on the court resumes.

Why are there no NBA games on Election Day?

For the second straight year, the NBA did not schedule games for Election Day, noting in a release for its 2023-24 schedule that the league “will continue to encourage fans and the broader NBA community to make a plan to vote and participate in the civic process.

“As part of this initiative, the NBA will share important resources from voting organizations and highlight the civic engagement work of teams in their markets.”

Last year, the NBA announced its schedule with no games during the 2022 U.S. midterm elections, saying, “The scheduling decision came out of the NBA family’s focus on promoting nonpartisan civic engagement and encouraging fans to make a plan to vote during midterm elections.” NBA teams were encouraged to distribute information on their states’ voting process and voter registration deadlines.

Has the NBA done this in the past?

Last year was the first time that the NBA did not play games on Election Day. However, the league encouraged fans to vote before then, including when 14 teams used their arenas or practice facilities as polling locations or voting centers in 2020.

When will the NBA resume its schedule?

The NBA will resume its schedule Wednesday with 14 games and two more games Thursday.

The NBA typically doesn’t host games on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve or the day of the NCAA men’s basketball championship game.

What other sports have games tonight?

The NHL has 10 games scheduled for Tuesday, with the first games starting at 7 p.m. ET. MLS also has two playoff games scheduled — between Atlanta United and Columbus (7 p.m. ET), and Nashville SC and Orlando City (9 p.m. ET). There are also college sports games, including NCAA football, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s soccer and women’s volleyball.

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(Photo: David Berding / Getty Images)