Sophia Michaels
The NBA, like most all other major sports leagues in the United States, are on hiatus for at least a month amid the COVID-19 outbreak that, as of now, has effected three NBA players. Rudy Gobert’s positive test prior to a Thunder-Jazz last Wednesday precipitated the NBA shutting down operations, which led to the rest of sports leagues suspending play as well.
Shortly after, Gobert’s teammate Donovan Mitchell and Christian Wood of the Pistons — who faced the Jazz a week ago — both also have tested positive for the coronavirus. We do not know who got the virus first, but it is undoubtedly spreading around the NBA and as such many teams are in a two-week self-quarantine period right now.
A number of players, including Gobert and Mitchell, have taken this time to issue PSA’s about the coronavirus as well as best practices, namely regular washing of hands and social distancing whenever possible, while also offering an update on their status as well.
Others, like Victor Oladipo, Jayson Tatum, and Damian Lillard have also taken some time to send a message to fans on the serious nature of the outbreak and to raise awareness for those best practices to help slow the spread and flatten the curve.
Hopefully others will heed this advice and recognize how severe the situation is and do their part to flatten the curve to ease the stress this outbreak will place on our hospitals and healthcare infrastructure.
Written by: Uproxx
