Earlier this year, Disney World hosted the NBA as they finished the remainder of their season at the ESPN Wide World of Sports.

NBA Merchandise

Although the NBA season has ended, we had heard that more basketball — this time in the form of several college basketball events — could be headed to Disney World soon. But, it seems those plans have now changed.

Just last month, several sources had indicated that ESPN was “planning to move at least eight of its men’s college basketball events to the ESPN Wide World of Sports property at Walt Disney World.”

ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex

Specifically, the 8 events that were expected to move to the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex were the following:

1. Champions Classic: Duke, Michigan State, Kansas, Kentucky
2. Charleston Classic: Charleston, Florida State, Houston, Oklahoma State, Penn State, Seton Hall, Tennessee, VCU
3. Myrtle Beach Invitational: Charlotte, Dayton, Loyola Chicago, Missouri, Nebraska, Penn, Pitt, Utah State
4. NIT Season Tip-Off: Arizona, Cincinnati, St. John’s, Texas Tech
5. Wooden Legacy: Georgetown, Kansas, UCLA, Virginia
6. Orlando Invitational: Auburn, Belmont, Boise State, Gonzaga, Michigan State, Siena, Saint Louis, Xavier
7. Jimmy V Classic: Gonzaga, Tennessee, Baylor, Rutgers
8. Diamond Head Classic: Arizona State, Hawaii, North Texas, Oklahoma, San Diego State, Saint Mary’s, Seattle, Temple

Basketball

But, plans appear to have changed. ESPN is now reporting that it has canceled its plans to host those events in Orlando. This college basketball “bubble” was expected to last from November 25th until early December, but it appears many of those events will now be pushed to the 2021-2022 season.

NBA Experience Shop

In an official statement, ESPN noted that “ESPN Events set out to create a protected environment for teams to participate in early-season events in Orlando…Based on certain challenges surrounding testing protocols, we opted to resume these tournaments during the 2021-22 season.” These “challenges surrounding testing protocols” appear to be related to retesting players who had previously tested positive for coronavirus and been cleared.

NBA Mickey Basketballs

Sources have reportedly told ESPN, however, that “while the other six events are likely to resume in 2021, there is hope for the Champions Classic and Jimmy V Classic to move to a different location for this season.” It seems basketball may not be returning to Disney World at the moment, but you can still stock up on TONS of basketball merchandise online so you can at least still show off your love for the game. We’ll keep our eyes out for more Disney news and continue to bring you updates, so be sure to come back for all the latest!

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Are you a college basketball fan? Let us know in the comments what team you’re a fan of!