NBA Reports 0 COVID-19 Positives out of 495 Players Tested Since Dec. 24
December 30, 2020
The NBA and NBPA announced Wednesday that the league has had zero new positive tests for COVID-19 out of 495 players tested since Dec. 24:
It's good news for the NBA, which saw the matchup between the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder on Dec. 23 postponed after the Rockets didn't have the required eight players available because of coronavirus protocols.
The NBA announced at the time of the postponement that "three Rockets players have returned tests that were either positive or inconclusive for coronavirus under the NBA's testing program." Additionally, four other Rockets players were quarantining as a part of the league's contact tracing protocols.
And James Harden was unavailable for that game after violating the league's health and safety protocols, which also resulted in a $50,000 fine.
John Wall, one of the players who went into quarantine after getting a haircut in his apartment alongside DeMarcus Cousins and Kenyon Martin Jr., spoke about the situation on Wednesday.
"I didn't do anything wrong. All I did was get a haircut at my apartment," he told reporters. "All of my tests came back negative. I'd rather get my hair cut in my apartment than be in a barbershop with people coming in and out. My barber also tested negative."
In the NBA's previous testing period (Dec. 16-23), just two players out of 558 tested positive for the coronavirus.