The new Hawks owners and coach Brian Goorjian have a time frame to work towards, following the release of an NBL plan for a December 3 tip-off, released on Friday.
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The plan would see the league play through until a grand final series proposed for late April.
"After consulting with the Clubs, ABPA, relevant government authorities and acting on the advice of the NBL's Medical Officer, we are aiming to start the 2020-21 NBL Season on or around December 3 and for the regular season to conclude by mid to late April 2021," NBL owner and chairman Larry Kestelman said.
"We believe this gives us the best chance to be able to accommodate as many fans as possible into venues and gives some certainty for our clubs, players, sponsors, venues and fans as they plan for next season."
The league also announced free agency will be delayed by two weeks to July 15, to allow the Hawks consider their recruiting plans.
"This will allow players more time to prepare for free agency as they consider their futures," commissioner Jeremy Loeliger said.
It will also allow extra time for clubs, including The Hawks who have transitioned to new owners over the past week and are currently finalising coaching and staffing arrangements.
The new ownership group, led by Sydney businessman Dorry Kordahi and involving former Phildelphia 76ers general manager Bryan Colangelo, has started to rebuild the club after it was plunged into a second round of voluntary administration in recent years.
However, they are also dealing with the community backlash over the NBL direction to remove Illawarra from the name.
