Report: NBA moves trade deadline to before All-Star break

The NBA is shaking up the league schedule a little bit.

The month of February will feel a little different for NBA fans next seasons. 

The league’s board of governors approved a change to the league calendar Tuesday, moving the trade up by two weeks to the second Thursday in February, Yahoo’s Shams Charania reports. 

The move puts next season’s deadline at Feb. 8, 10 days before the All-Star Game, as opposed to the traditional date just after the break. 

The timing of the trade deadline was never more important than last season, when it was reported during the All-Star Game that DeMarcus Cousins had been traded to the Pelicans. Cousins may or may not have found out about the trade while addressing the media after the game. 

The earlier deadline will also present its own quirks. What happens if, for instance, Carmelo Anthony gets traded to the Rockets just before the All-Star Game? Does he get to suit up for the Western Conference? Does he bump another player off the team?

The main benefit of the earlier deadline is that it will give traded players more time to acclimate themselves to their new teams. They’ll get to play two more weeks’ worth of games before the playoffs.