Wood tests positive for coronavirus
Christian Wood of the Detroit Pistons has tested positive for the coronavirus, a person with direct knowledge of the situation said.
The former Milwaukee Bucks center is feeling fine, according to the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because neither the Pistons nor Wood had publicly confirmed his positive result. Wood's diagnosis became known one week after he played against the Utah Jazz – spending much of that night matched up with Rudy Gobert, who was the first NBA player known to test positive for the virus.
Utah's Donovan Mitchell has also tested positive for the virus. It cannot be concluded that any of those three players were involved in spreading it to one another.
The Pistons later confirmed that a player – they did not name Wood – tested positive Saturday and has been in self-isolation.
“A player on the Detroit Pistons, who is under the care of team medical staff and in self-isolation since Wednesday night, was tested for COVID-19,” the team said. “A preliminary positive result came back on March 14. The health and safety of our players, our organization, those throughout our league, and all those potentially impacted by this situation is paramount.”
For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.
The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover. In mainland China, where the virus first exploded, more than 80,000 people have been diagnosed and more than 58,000 have so far recovered.
The NBA's shutdown, which began Wednesday, came with Wood in the best stretch of his career. He had averaged 21.6 points and 9.1 rebounds over a 16-game stretch starting Feb. 2.
Wood had what was then a seasonhigh 30 points in that March 7 game against the Jazz, topping it four nights later with a 32-point effort against Philadelphia. He's having his best season, averaging 13.1 points and 6.3 rebounds.
“The darkest nights produce the brightest stars,” Wood wrote on Instagram earlier in the week, his comment coming alongside a photo he posted of him dunking over Gobert – the NBA's reigning defensive player of the year and a first-time All-Star this season.
Wood played for the Bucks in 201819.
Baseball
A minor leaguer for the New York Yankees has tested positive for the coronavirus, becoming the first known player affiliated with Major League Baseball to contract COVID-19.
The team said Sunday the unidentified player had spent his entire time at the minor league complex and hadn't been over at the main stadium and facilities used by the major leaguers.
Yankees player representative Zack Britton recently said the team had voted to remain together in Tampa and continue voluntary workouts. In the wake of the virus outbreak, Major League Baseball and the union had given players the option to stay at the site of their spring camp, return to their offseason homes or go to the club's home city.
MLB is expected to update teams on its policy Monday.
The rest of the spring training schedule was called off Thursday and opening day, which had been scheduled for March 26, was postponed for at least two weeks.
College basketball
NCAA vice president of men's basketball Dan Gavitt says brackets won't be created for the NCAA men's and women's basketball tournaments that were canceled due to coronavirus concerns. Gavit says he made the decision and it was supported by basketball committees.
“There is not an authentic way to produce tournament fields and brackets at this point without speculating,” Gavitt said Sunday, the day the men's NCAA Tournament field had been scheduled to be announced. “And, that isn't fair to the teams that would be positively or negatively impacted by manufacturing March Madness. More importantly, in light of this global health crisis, I believe we need to keep college basketball in perspective.”
College basketball's showcase was canceled Thursday, leading to suggestions from coaches and athletic directors to release brackets for the event even though it won't happen this year.
“Players and coaches want to see their school name on the bracket,” Gavitt acknowledges. “Members of the media want to dissect matchups. Bracketologists want to compare the work of the committees versus what they've predicted. Fans are curious for those same reasons. All of us want something to fill the void we're feeling. However, anything less than a credible process is inconsistent with the tradition of the NCAA basketball championships. … There will always be an asterisk next to the 2020 NCAA men's and women's basketball championships regardless if brackets are released.”
NCAA President Mark Emmert has said postponing the tournament indefinitely was not feasible.
Auto racing
The Texas racetrack that hosts the Formula One U.S. Grand Prix and other motor racing series announced it is closing indefinitely after a series of cancellations because of concerns about the coronavirus.
The Circuit of the Americas was supposed to host the MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas on April 5 and the IndyCar Challenge on April 26. Both races have been canceled. The track is also home to the USL soccer team Austin Bold and the league season has been suspended.
Horse racing
One of the prep races for the Kentucky Derby has been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The $700,000 Sunland Derby on March 22 in New Mexico was called off.
The Sunland Derby winner would have earned 50 points toward qualifying for the 20-horse field in the Kentucky Derby. Track officials had previously said the race would be run without spectators.
It's the second time the race was canceled. In 2016, an outbreak of an equine herpes virus among the horse population forced it to be called off.