NBA calls off two more games over virus-related concerns
The NBA called off two more games because of COVID-related and contact tracing issues on Jan. 11, and a person with knowledge of the situation said the Miami Heat were preparing to be without “at least five” players for the next several days because of possible exposure to the coronavirus.
The Jan. 11 game in Dallas between the Mavericks and the New Orleans Pelicans was postponed by the league, as well as the Jan. 12 matchup in Chicago between the Bull sand the Boston Celtics. The league’ s general managers were meeting Jan .11 to discuss the league’s current virus situation, with involvement from the National Basketball
Players Association. The NB A’ s board of governors willmeet Jan. 12 on the topic.
The latest postponements come one day after Miami’s game in Boston was called off because of contact-tracing issues within the Heat. The Celtics would have had only the league-minimum eight available players for that game — after seven were ruledout inaccordance with the league’s health and safety protocols for playing amid the ongoing pandemic. Miami’s Avery Bradley, who did not play in the NBA’s restart bubble last season out of concern about exposure to the virus, was also ruled out of that game because of the protocols.
Miami scheduled a flight from Boston to Philadelphia on Jan. 11 in advance of a game there Jan. 12, but was preparing to leave some players behind or send some home separately because of the tracing results, said a person familiar with the situation. The person spoke to TheAssociated Press on condition of anonymity because those details were not publicly released. The identities of those players was not revealed, and it is unclear if other members of the Heat travel party were affected.
“Definitely been a unique start to the year,” Heat guard Duncan Robinson said in an appearance onReddit. “Been different challenges with all the protocols andnewnorms. I think thegeneral sentiment is that everyonewants to play but alsoeveryonewants tobe safe first.”
Dallas didnothave enough players cleared to play Jan. 11 because the contact-tracing process was still ongoing, just as was the case for theHeat in Boston on Jan. 10, said a personwithknowledge of that situation. The person spoke with AP on condition of anonymity because it had not beendisclosed publicly by the league or the team.
“Damn..” Pelicans guard Josh Hart tweeted.
Contact tracing within the NBA has gotten much more aggressive and hightech in recent days, with a new requirement that everyone within the travel parties wear an electronic device that tracks their proximity to one another. The data from those devices is part of the determination as towhether a player needs to quarantine because of possible exposure.