Report: Adam Silver 'Optimistic' NBA's COVID Positive Rate Will Improve in Feb.
The NBA, like so many other sports leagues that are attempting to play a season without a bubble-like environment during the COVID-19 pandemic, is dealing with concerns about the coronavirus as the 2020-21 campaign continues.
However, commissioner Adam Silver said he is "optimistic about improvements in February...after we get through the darkest days," per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium.
Charania reported that Sunday's game between the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat was postponed because Miami did not have the necessary eight players to play following an inconclusive test.
Charania noted Silver's quote regarding February optimism came when he addressed a group of team governors, general managers, presidents, coaches and NBA Players Association leaders on Dec. 30.
While it was Miami that did not have enough players for the postponed road game, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston reported the Celtics had the minimum number of eight players available, two of whom were two-way players.
The NBA does have some flexibility to accommodate postponed games considering it has not yet released the second half of the schedule. It also postponed an opening-night matchup between the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder.
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported the league "has no plans to pause the season despite thinning rosters because of COVID-19 protocols in several places."
According to Charania, there are more than two dozen players in quarantine or isolation around the league because of health and safety protocols. Players have tested positive on nine teams, but a Board of Governors call on Friday was more focused on whether fans could return to arenas as vaccines are rolled out than whether the season is in jeopardy.
While the NBA is hosting games at home arenas, the G League will play its 2021 season in a bubble at the Walt Disney World Resort.
The NBA finished its 2019-20 season and the entirety of its playoffs at Walt Disney World Resort and did not have a single positive COVID-19 test.
