How Do NBA Teams Travel?
How do NBA teams travel?
The answer may surprise you.
They don’t all fly on private jets, but they do have some pretty sweet setups.
Read on to learn more about how NBA teams travel.
NBA Teams Travel by Air
The NBA is a global league with teams traveling all over the country to play games. The average NBA team plays 41 home games and 41 away games. That means that NBA teams spend a lot of time on airplanes! In fact, NBA teams travel more than any other professional sports teams.
All teams have their own planes
In the NBA, all teams have their own planes. They fly to every game, and they often have to fly long distances for games. The planes are usually very comfortable, and they have a lot of space for the players to sit and sleep.
Players have their own seats
players have their own first-class, leather seats on the plane, complete with leg rests, personal TVs and plenty of space to stretch out. The flight attendants on these private charters know the players by name and cater to their every need, whether it’s a pre-flight meal or a post-game snack. Some teams even have their own chef onboard who prepares meals specifically for the players. When they arrive at their destination, there’s always a bus waiting to take them directly from the airport to the arena.
Teams fly to games together
Most NBA teams fly to games together on charter flights. The planes are usually outfitted with first-class and coach seats, and the players can choose which seating area they prefer. The teams will often fly commercial if they are traveling to multiple cities in a short period of time, but they will always fly charter when possible.
In recent years, some teams have begun to fly private planes to games. This is usually only done by the wealthier teams, as the cost of flying private can be quite high. However, private planes do offer some advantages over charter flights. They are usually more comfortable and have more amenities, and they allow the team to travel on their own schedule.
NBA Teams Travel by Bus
Most NBA teams travel by bus. The bus is the most common mode of transportation for NBA teams. It is the most convenient and most comfortable way to travel. It is also the safest way to travel.
Some teams take buses to games
Not all NBA teams travel by plane. In fact, some squads still make road trips by bus. It’s a more traditional method of transportation and it can save money on airfare, but it’s certainly not as comfortable as flying. Here are a few teams that still travel by bus:
-The Sacramento Kings used to be known as the Rochester Royals and they kept the name when they relocated to California in 1957. The team continued to use buses for road trips until 1971 when they switched to planes.
-The Indiana Pacers also used to travel by bus, but they made the switch to planes in 1976.
-The Milwaukee Bucks stopped traveling by bus in 1994.
-The Utah Jazz are one of the most recent teams to switch from bus travel to flying, making the switch in 2001.
Buses are more common for practice
Buses are more common for practice because it’s more efficient for the entire team to travel together and there’s less wear and tear on their bodies. For example, if the team is traveling from Los Angeles to Sacramento for a game, they’ll take a bus. But if they have to travel from San Antonio to Oklahoma City for a game, they’re more likely to fly because it’s a longer distance and they can get there faster by flying.
Buses are less expensive than planes
Buses are less expensive than planes, and they’re becoming more popular among professional sports teams. The New York Knicks recently became the latest team to make the switch, opting to take a bus to most of their away games in an effort to save money.
Other teams have been doing it for years. The San Antonio Spurs have been taking a bus to some away games since the 1990s, and the Boston Celtics did the same thing for a while in the early 2000s. The Los Angeles Lakers even considered switching to buses full-time in 2011, but ultimately decided against it.
The main reason teams travel by bus is because it’s cheaper than flying. It costs hundreds of thousands of dollars less per year to charter a bus than it does to charter a plane, and that savings can be significant for NBA teams.
There are some drawbacks to traveling by bus, of course. It takes longer, and there’s not as much downtime on the road since you’re not sitting in an airport or at a hotel all day. But for teams looking to save money, buses are becoming an increasingly popular option.
NBA Teams Travel by Train
The NBA has a long tradition of teams travelling by train. In the early days of the league, travelling by train was the only way for teams to get from city to city. Today, teams still travel by train because it is a convenient and efficient way to travel. It also allows the team to bond and build team unity.
A few teams take trains to games
The New Jersey Nets were the first team to travel by rail in over 50 years when they took a train to a game in Boston in 2008. The idea caught on, and a few other teams have since followed suit. The
Los Angeles Lakers, for example, took a train to
Trains are slower than planes
The time-consuming nature of travel by train was one of the main reasons why NBA teams switched to plane travel in the 1960s. Train travel was simply too slow to accommodate the league’s schedule. While a cross-country flight from New York to Los Angeles might take six hours, a train trip would take closer to three days. This made it difficult for teams to play back-to-back games in different cities, which was becoming more and more common as the league expanded.
While planes are faster than trains, they are not always the most efficient way to travel. Train travel can be just as fast as plane travel if you factor in the time it takes to get to and from the airport. When you add in security lines and baggage claim, traveling by train can sometimes be just as quick as flying.
Trains are more comfortable than buses
While NBA teams do occasionally travel by bus, most teams prefer to travel by train. Trains are much more comfortable than buses, and they offer a smoother ride. Plus, trains have beds and showers, so players can rest and relax while they travel.